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COMPLIMENTARY  DINUER 


STEPHEN    N.    GIFFORD,    Esq., 

Clerk  of  the  Massachusetts  Senate, 


In   Honor  of  his  Twenty-five  Years'  Service  in  that  Capacity, 
Given  by  the  Members  of  the  Senate  during  that  Period, 


AT  THE  UNITED  STATES  HOTEL,  BOSTON, 
March  id,  1882. 


Frotn  a  Phonographic  Report. 


BOSTON : 
PRESS  OF  GEO.  H.  ELLIS,  141  FRANKLIN  STREET. 
1883. 


COMPLIMENTARY   DINNER 


TO 


STEPHEN    N.    GIFFORD,    Esq., 

Clerk  of  the  Massachusetts  Senate, 


In  Honor  of  his  Twenty-five  Years'   Service  in  that  Capacity. 
Given  by  the  Members  of  the  Senate  during  that  Period, 


AT  THE  UNITED  STATES  HOTEL,  BOSTON, 
March  io,  1882. 


From  a  Phonographic  Report, 


BOSTON : 

PRESS  OF  GEO.  H.  ELLIS,  141  FRANKLIN  STREET. 
1883. 


Jfix  M0n0r 


OF    THE    FAITHFUL    SERVICE    OF    A    TRUE    MAN,   WHO   FOR   MANY  YEARS 

HAS  ADORNED   THE   TRUST   REPOSED   IN    HIM    BY   EVERY  QUALITY 

WHICH     SHOULD     DISTINGUISH     THE     PUBLIC      SERVICE 

AND    EVERY    GRACE    OF    CHARACTER   WHICH 

CAN   ATTACH   HIM   TO  HIS  ASSOCIATES. 


CORRESPONDENCE. 


Boston,  Feb.  17,  1883. 

Stephen  N.  Gifford,  Esq. : 

Dear  Sir, —  In  recognition  of  your  long  and  valuable  service 
to  the  Commonwealth  as  Clerk  of  the  Massachusetts  Senate,  and 
also,  and  not  less,  in  the  exercise  of  those  feelings  of  earnest 
friendship  and  regard  which  so  many  years  of  delightful  personal 
intercourse  have  engendered,  the  undersigned,  a  committee  for 
that  purpose,  tender  to  you,  on  behalf  of  themselves  and  their 
associates, —  members  of  the  Senate  for  the  last  twenty-five  years, 
—  a  complimentary  dinner,  to  be  given,  if  agreeable  to  you,  at  the 
United  States  Hotel,  in  Boston,  March  10,  at  five  o'clock  P.M. 

Will  you  please  inform  us  whether  the  time  will  suit  your 
convenience,  and  oblige. 

Very  respectfully  and  cordially  yours, 

Robert  R.  Bishop, 

Joseph  Bennett, 

Geo.  G.  Crocker,  )-  Committee. 

Andrew  C.  Stone,  | 

Francis  W.  Rockwell,  J 


Boston,  Feb.  26,  1882. 

Gentlemen, —  Your  note  of  the  17th  inst.  is  received;  and, 
in  reply,  I  assure  you  that  I  am  deeply  grateful  for  your  very  kind 
expressions  of  regard  for  myself  personally,  and  for  the  generous 
estimation  of  my  services  during  my  long  official  connection  with 
the  Senate.  I  deem  myself  most  fortunate  to  have  an  opportunity 
to  greet  once  more  the  friends  of  past  years,  and  I  gladly  accept 
the  invitation  so  kindly  extended  to  meet  you  and  them  at  the 
time  and  place  named  in  your  note. 

Yours  very  truly, 

S.  N.  GIFFORD. 
Hon.  Robert  R.  Bishop  and  others. 


DINNER. 


In  response  to  the  invitation  of  the  Committee  of  Arrange- 
ments, over  two  hundred  members  of  the  Senate,  from  1858 
to  1882  inclusive,  and  including  members  from  each  Senate 
during  that  period,  sat  down  to  the  dinner  in  honor  of  the 
veteran  Clerk.  Hon.  William  Claflin,  the  senior  living 
President  of  the  Senate  during  that  period  in  the  country, 
presided. 

After  the  company  had  assembled  in  the  dining-hall, 
the  President  invited  Rev.  Edmund  Dowse,  of  Sherborn, 
Chaplain  of  the  Senate,  to  invoke  the  divine  blessing,  which 
he  did  as  follows  :  — 

INVOCATION    BY    REV.    EDMUND    DOWSE. 

Almighty  God,  we  thank  thee  for  this  suspension  of 
business,  of  burdens  and  cares,  for  a  season  of  rational  and 
healthful  recreation.  We  thank  thee  that  so  large  a  number 
who  have  been  associated  together  in  public  life  have  con- 
vened on  this  occasion  to  renew  acquaintance,  to  strengthen 
friendships,  and  more  especially  to  testify  their  respect  and 
esteem  for  him  who,  for  a  quarter  of  a  century  annually, 
they  have  chosen  to  make  a  record  of  their  legislative  acts  ; 
and,  while  we  gratefully  acknowledge  thee,  in  view  of  his 
long,  faithful,  and  successful  service,  we  desire  to  commend 
him  to  thy  Fatherly  care  in  the  future,  asking  that  thou 
wilt  grant  him  length  of  days,  a  competence  of  worldly 
good,  all  merited  honors,  and  a  final  approval  of  thee. 

Grant  that  thy  servants  may  go  away  from  this  occasion 
refreshed  for  the  duties  of  life,  and  that  we  may  ever  remain 
loyal  to  the  interests  of  the  State,  of  our  country,  of  the 


great  human  brotherhood,  and  to  thee,  the  God  and  Father 
of  us  all ;  and  thine  shall  be  the  praise  forever.     Amen. 

After  the  dinner  was  concluded,  the  President  again  asked 
the  attention  of  the  company,  and  spoke  as  follows  :  — 

ADDRESS    OF    HON.    WILLIAM    CLAFLIN. 

Gentlemen,  members  of  the  present  and  past  Senates  of 
the  State  of  Massachusetts,  I  meet  you  with  sincere  pleasure 
to-night  for  the  purpose  of  congratulating  you  and  our  guest 
upon  his  quarter  of  a  century  of  continuous  public  service 
[applause],  an  occasion  which  has  never  occurred  in  the 
past,  and  certainly  will  very  rarely  in  the  future.  No  pre- 
decessor of  his  has  occupied  his  position  for  more  than  half 
that  time.  The  gentleman  who  has  succeeded  in  securing 
for  twenty-five  years  the  ballots  of  the  Senate  of  Massachu- 
setts must  be  possessed  of  rare  qualities  [applause],  of  good 
sense,  of  thorough  knowledge,  and  devotion  to  the  duties  of 
the  position  which  he  has  held.     [Applause.] 

Massachusetts  has  always  had  the  idea  of  continuous 
public  service,  wherever  she  could  find  a  gentleman  that 
performed  the  duties  of  his  office  to  her  acceptance. 
Evidence  of  this  is  seen  in  the  town  elections  all  over  the 
State,  where  we  find  gentlemen  holding  office  from  twenty 
to  thirty,  and  sometimes  forty,  years  ;  so  that  civil  service 
reform  does  belong  to  the  sentiment  of  Massachusetts.  We 
are  in  favor  of  it.  We  expect  that  our  Senators  in  Con- 
gress and  our  Representatives  will,  to  the  best  of  their 
ability,  promote  it,  until  the  subordinate  positions  are  taken 
from  the  arena  of  politics,  and  men  are  left  free  to  assert 
their  principles  and  perform  their  duties  in  Congress 
without  the  pressure  of  public  office  driving  them  in  this 
direction  or  in  that  direction.     [Applause.] 

I  only  intend  to  detain  you  a  few  moments,  for  we  have 
too  many  gentlemen  from  whom  you  will  desire  to  hear ; 
but  I  must  say  in  passing  that  there  is  no  more  agreeable 
public  position  for  those  who  occupy  it  than  a  position  in 
the  Senate  of  Massachusetts.  The  body  is  large  enough  for 
active  work,  it  is  small  enough  for  every  one  to  keep  thor- 


oughly  acquainted  with  his  associates.  From  its  numbers 
have  been  taken  men  for  all  positions  in  the  country.  It  is 
a  high  and  honorable  position,  and  every  man  who  has  had 
the  honor  to  occupy  it  must  feel  gratified  that  the  time  has 
been  when  he  could  be  one  of  the  Senate  of  the  State  ; 
and  he  must  look  back  to  it,  years  afterward,  with  satis- 
faction. To  be  sure,  the  Senate  is  so  pleasant  a  body  that 
sometimes  we  think  that  our  Senators,  and  also  our  Repre- 
sentatives, like  to  stay  a  little  longer  in  the  season  than 
they  have  reason  to  ;  and  I  am  sometimes  afraid  that  that 
reform  which  I  have  so  many  years  advocated  of  biennial 
sessions  has  been  kept  back  by  this  desire  of  our  friends. 
[Laughter.]  But  I  should  not  do  them  the  injustice  of 
saying  this  is  so;  but  I  trust  that  this  reform,  which  seems 
to  me  so  essential  to  the  politics  of  almost  all  of  the  States 
of  the  Union,  will  be  as  far  perfected  as  it  is  possible  for 
the  Legislature  to  do  it  this  year,  in  order  that  the  people 
of  this  State  may  say  by  their  votes  at  the  proper  time 
whether  or  not  we  shall  have  an  annual  or  biennial  session. 
[Applause.] 

In  former  times,  when  we  met  at  the  State  House,  and 
stayed  some  thirty  or  sixty  days,  it  did  not  much  matter, — 
the  expense  to  the  State  was  not  a  great  consideration.  It 
is  not  that  which  is  our  trouble  :  it  is  the  trouble  of  sending 
you  there,  gentlemen, —  the  trouble  of  the  long  session  and 
constant  change  of  the  law.  These  things  should  be 
altered.  The  time  has  now  come,  it  seems  to  me,  when 
this  reform,  so  much  to  be  desired,  should  be  accomplished. 

But  I  will  pass  on  to  say  one  or  two  other  things  in 
regard  to  our  State.  Certainly,  we  must  be  satisfied  with 
her  prosperity  and  growth  in  the  past.  You  are  called 
upon  at  the  present  session  of  the  Senate  to  apportion  the 
State  for  twelve  Representatives  in  Congress, —  an  encourag- 
ing increase,  taking  into  consideration  the  small  area  of 
our  State,  our  confined  space,  and  our  freedom  from  mines 
and  other  things  of  that  nature  that  tend  to  add  to  the 
population  of  other  States.  It  is  a  wonderful  fact  that  this 
State  should  keep  up  its   numbers  in  proportion   with  the 


lO 

other  flourishing  States  of  the  country, —  that,  while  the 
country  has  grown  from  forty  to  fifty  millions  in  ten  years, 
we  have  been  able  to  increase  our  number  in  proportion. 
We  are  proud  of  the  position  which  we  hold  in  Congress ; 
and,  to  aid  in  the  great  discussions  which  have  been  going 
on  in  regard  to  the  rights  of  certain  foreign  people,  Massa- 
chusetts has  held  up  her  old  ideas  by  her  Senators  firmly. 
And,  to  the  honor  of  the  State,  they  undoubtedly  will  sustain 
them  to  the  end.     [Applause.] 

Gentlemen,  it  is  with  the  sincerest  regret  that  I  cannot 
bring  to  you  to-night  our  respected  Chief  Magistrate,  who 
is  always  welcome  on  all  such  occasions  when  the  people 
are  assembled.  He  has  kindly  sent  a  letter,  which  I  will 
take  the  opportunity  to  read,  showing  his  good  feeling 
toward  our  guest :  — 

Hon.  Robert  R.  Bishop  : 

My  dear  Mr.  President., —  As  I  stated  to  you,  I  am  unable  to  be 
present  at  the  complimentary  dinner  to  Mr.  Gifford;  but  our  Common- 
wealth will  be  represented  by  his  Honor,  the  Lieutenant-Governor. 
I  cannot  forbear,  however,  to  send  my  congratulations  and  express  my 
respect  for  the  veteran  Clerk  of  the  Senate,  who  has  for  a  quarter  of 
a  century  not  only  discharged  the  duties  of  his  office,  but  endeared 
himself  to  a  continually  widening  circle  of  friends.     [Applause.] 

Sincerely  yours, 

John  D.  Long. 

I  can  echo  what  the  Governor  has  said  as  to  his  endearing 
himself  to  his  friends.  For  two  years  I  sat  by  his  side,  and 
I  must  express  what  I  have  no  doubt  you  all  feel,  that  we 
are  greatly  indebted  to  him  for  his  uniform  kindness,  and 
for  the  great  pleasure  with  which  he  has  attended  to  all  our 
wants,  and  for  his  courtesy  in  all  our  intercourse  in  these 
many,  many  years.     [Applause.] 

I  have  now  the  pleasure  of  introducing  to  you  the  Lieu- 
tenant Governor  of  the  State.     [Applause.] 

ADDRESS    OF    HON,    BYRON    WESTON. 

Mr.  President  and  Gentlemen, —  It  is  with  a  great  deal  of 
diffidence  that  I  rise  before  you  to-night,  and  take  the  rdle 


II 

that  has  been  assigned  to  me.  I  have  figured  as  a 
mihtary  man  ;  as  a  manufacturer ;  like  yourselves,  in  the 
Senatorial  capacity ;  but,  as  a  public  speaker,  especially 
as  one  responding  for  the  Commonwealth,  my  experience 
is  certainly  very  limited.  You  all  remember  the  story 
of  the  boy  who  said  his  father  was  a  bank  director,  horse- 
dealer,  liquor-seller,  and  also  a  deacon  ;  but  he  did  very  little 
business  in  the  last  line.  [Laughter.]  I  can  at  least, 
however,  say  that  it  does  my  heart  good  and  awakens  my 
pride  for  the  old  Commonwealth  to  meet  at  this  board  so 
many  of  the  men  who,  during  the  last  quarter  of  a  century, 
have  occupied  seats  in  the  Senate  of  Massachusetts,  some 
of  them  as  its  presiding  officers,  one  of  them  afterward  the 
Chief  Magistrate  of  the  Commonwealth,  all  representing 
her  enterprise  and  civilization.  Especially  am  I  glad  to 
pay  my  tribute  of  respect  and  of  friendship  to  the  faithful 
Clerk,  the  genial  companion,  the  wise  and  venerable  head, 
shining  even  brighter  than  the  gilded  dome  under  which 
he  serves,  and  almost  as  familiar  to  the  people.  [Laughter 
and  applause.]  Where  there  are  so  many  crowns  upon 
which  this  compliment  would  gracefully  rest,  perhaps  it 
is  necessary  to  say  I  refer  to  our  friend,  the  Hon.  Stephen 
N.  Gifford.  Where  shall  we  look  upon  his  like }  What 
an  eventful  period  of  our  history  is  spanned  by  his  life ! 
Reaching  from  the  days  of  the  early  Federalists  even  unto 
the  disappearing  coat-tails  of  the  greenbacker,  and  including 
the  triumphs  of  Webster,  the  overthrow  of  nuUification, 
the  fervor  of  the  anti-slavery  movement,  the  struggles  in 
Kansas,  the  short-lived  flash  of  Know-Nothingism,  the 
shining  glory  of  John  A.  Andrew,  the  war  and  the  triumph 
of  the  nation  against  rebellion,  and  the  happy  return  of  the 
grandest  prosperity  that  ever  shone  upon  a  nation, — 
Auditor,  the  father  of  the  Senate,  Clerk  for  twenty-five 
years,  the  leading  songster  in  the  Senate  choir  of  1872 
[laughter],  not  averse  to  the  fisherman's  rod,  and  the  most 
entertaining  of  conversationalists  in  his  reminiscences  of 
the  past  ;  well  may  the  Commonwealth  be  called  upon 
to   respond,   when   such   a   one   of    our   public    servants    is 


12 

honored,  and  his  long  and  faithful  service  recognized.  I 
make  no  apology ;  for,  had  I  the  eloquence  of  all  the  orators, 
I  could  not  represent  Massachusetts  better  than  by  saying 
that  she  respects  and  honors  Stephen  N.  Gifford,  and  trusts 
that  he  may  serve  her  as  long  as  he  lives.     [Applause.] 

The  President. —  Gentlemen,  we  have  heard  from  the 
Commonwealth.  I  think  it  is  about  time  we  began  to  hear 
from  our  present  Senators.  We  all  know  we  have  a  presid- 
ing officer  who  has  occupied  the  place  for  three  years,  having 
been  in  continuous  service  as  a  member  of  the  Senate  for 
five  years,  a  remarkable  thing  nowadays ;  and  we  shall  be 
glad  to  hear  from  him.  We  all  honor  and  love  him  in  his 
own  home.  No  man  is  more  popular  in  his  city,  the  city  of 
Newton,  than  Mr.  Bishop,  and  I  take  great  pleasure  in  intro- 
ducing him. 

Mr.  Bishop  was  greeted  with  hearty  and  long  continued 
applause;  and,  after  it  had  subsided,  he  spoke  as  follows:  — 

ADDRESS    OF    HON.    ROBERT    R.    BISHOP. 

Mr.  President, —  I  am  sure  that  the  reason  why  you  call 
upon  me  is  that  I  may  have  opportunity,  on  behalf  of  the 
present  Senate,  to  express  its  sentiments  of  welcome  and 
fellowship  to  its  predecessors  all  along  the  line,  on  an 
occasion  when  we  come  together  for  the  common  purpose 
of  tendering  our  united  tribute  of  respect,  of  friendship,  of 
recollection,  and  of  love  to  the  veteran  Clerk  of  all  these 
Senates,  Stephen  N.  Gifford.     [Applause.] 

Any  one  who  has  read  "  Tom  Brown's  School  Days  at 
Rugby  "  —  and  every  Senator  is  presumed  to  have  read  that 
book  —  will  recollect  that  at  all  the  reunions  and  anniver- 
saries, when  the  students  of  many  years  come  back,  the  day 
belongs  to  the  old  boys  by  right  of  a  prior  title,  and  the  new 
boys  are  unceremoniously  pushed  aside.  So,  since  I  have  not 
the  slightest  intention  of  admitting  that  I  am  an  old  boy,  or 
that  any  one  of  my  associates  is  such,  we  cheerfully  grant, 
brethren  of  the  former  Senates,  that  the  occasion  is  mainly 
yours, —  that  it  is  a  time  when  the  old  precept  should  be 


13 

observed  that  the  younger  portion  of  the  family  is  to  be 
seen  and  not  heard  [laughter]  ;  and,  grateful  that  it  has 
been  our  good  fortune  to  initiate  this  festival,  we  rejoicingly 
turn  it  over  to  your  hands. 

Welcome,  then,  Senators  of  the  many  Senates,  to  a 
revival,  even  though  for  one  brief  hour,  of  the  recollections 
and  the  spirit  of  your  former  labors.  Welcome  again  in 
spirit  to  the  Senate  Chamber,  that  grand  old  hall  which 
Rufus  Choate  was  accustomed  to  call  "  the  finest  legislative 
room  in  the  world."  It  remains,  in  chaste  dignity  of  appear- 
ance and  in  delightful  cheerfulness,  the  same  as  when  you 
left  it.  It  is  true  the  old  fireplaces  which  flanked  the  Presi- 
dent's desk  have  disappeared.  It  is  true  that  the  snuff-box 
which  for  generations  ornamented  one  mantel-piece,  and  from 
which,  as  the  most  distinguished  courtesy  which  he  could 
bestow>  the  President  took  a  pinch  with  strangers,  has  been 
carefully  appropriated  by  the  Secretary  of  State.  [Laugh- 
ter.] I  am  afraid  that  it  is  true  that  the  old  box  of  camomile 
flowers  which  graced  the  other  will  be  found  in  the  coat 
pocket  of  some  one  of  the  members  of  the  Senate  of  1858, 
Mr.  Gifford's  first  Senate.  [Renewed  laughter.]  But  the 
drum  and  sword  and  Hessian  cap  and  the  guns  are  there. 
It  is  still  the  duty  of  the  President,  when  the  debates 
approach  the  dull  and  uninteresting  point, —  they  never 
reach  it  [applause], —  to  gaze  vacantly  at  the  magnolia  blos- 
soms and  the  quaint  festoons  of  oak  leaves  in  the  ceiling, 
and  thus  to  give  the  appearance  of  being  absorbed  in  rapt 
attention.  [Laughter.]  The  desks  of  the  law-makers  are 
still  there  between  the  beautiful  Corinthian  pillars.  The 
present  Senate  would  never  forgive  me  if  I  did  not  hasten 
to  say  that  I  do  not  mean  in  the  slightest  to  imply  that  these 
are  the  only  pillars  of  State  which  still  remain.  [Laughter 
and  applause.]  These  are  there,  and  you,  fellow-Senators  of 
the  previous  Senates,  are  there,  in  spirit.  Call  up  the  vivid, 
urgent,  exigent  debates  and  struggles  of  your  time  ;  when 
the  tug  and  struggle  was  hard  and  sharp  and  long ;  when 
a  single  vote,  it  may  be,  carried  or  defeated  measures  which 
you,  in  your  ardor,  thought  contained  the  remedy  for  all 
evils  or  carried  the  seeds  of  great  ruin.     How  you  fought 


14 

over  them  !  We  are  doing  it  all  over  again  now.  You  are 
still  there  in  your  successors,  fighting  over  again  the  battles 
which,  to  them,  are  equally  urgent  and  pregnant,  with 
equally  varying  fortune.  How  clearly,  as  one  looks  back, 
does  the  truth  come  out  that  it  is  not  so  much  the  success 
or  failure  of  a  specific  measure  which  carries  the  marked 
consequences  which  you  have  apprehended,  as  it  is  that 
"out  of  the  clashing  of  discordant  views  there  comes  the 
harmony  of  a  perfect  State."     [Applause.] 

These  are  all  there,  and  —  Mr.  Gifford  is  there.  He  is 
there  in  the  same  quiet,  unostentatious  performance  of  the 
duties  of  his  office,  with  the  same  urbanity  and  simplicity 
of  manner,  with  the  same  clear  sunlight  shining  through  his 
character,  with  the  same  stability  of  manhood,  as  on  the  day 
when  he  first  took  the  oath  of  office.  [Applause.]  Like 
the  twelve  tribes  of  Israel  or  the  clans  of  the  valley,  we 
gather  to-night,  every  one  under  its  own  banner ;  but  our 
emotion  toward  him  is  described  by  the  lines, — 

"  Saxon  and  Norman  and  Dane  are  we, 

But  all  of  us  Danes  in  our  welcome  of  thee." 

How  shall  we  speak  of  him  as  he  deserves,  and  to  his 
face  ?  There  is  only  one  way  in  which  a  task  at  once  so 
grateful  and  so  delicate  can  be  performed,  and  that  is  to 
speak  as  we  feel,  from  the  heart  ;  and  Mr.  Gifford  will 
pardon  me,  I  am  sure,  if,  in  order  to  express  my  own  feel- 
ings, which  you  all  share,  I  repeat  a  conversation  which  I 
lately  had  with  a  friend  of  exquisite  perceptions,  about  a 
portrait.  Seeing  a  striking  etching  of  Dean  Stanley  in  his 
parlor,  I  said,  "That's  a  strong  face."  "Yes,"  said  he,  "it 
is  a  strong  face  ;  but  I  always  think  that  its  strength  comes 
from  conviction  and  from  conscience."  My  friends.  Dean 
Stanley  and  Mr.  Gifford  are  not  relatives,  so  far  as  I  know  ; 
but  I  ask  you  to  look  at  that  face  on  this  memorial  [holding 
up  the  portrait  of  Mr.  Gifford  upon  the  memento  prepared 
for  the  guests],  and,  remembering  that,  in  the  long  inter- 
course of  years,  no  one  of  you  ever  heard  him  speak  a  word 
that  you  would  wish  unsaid,  nor  witnessed  an  act  which  did 


15 

not  increase  your  respect  for  his  manhood,  tell  me  if  there 
is  not  something  in  your  own  feelings  about  its  original  that 
is  stronger  than  friendship,  higher  than  mere  respect,  deeper 
even  than  affection, —  the  conviction  that  his  long  life  as  a 
man  and  his  quarter  of  a  century  as  a  public  officer  have 
been  guided  and  governed  by  the  highest  behests  of  convic- 
tion and  conscience,  and  not  by  will  or  personal  purpose. 
[Applause.] 

Speak  of  the  perfect  performance  of  his  duties  as  Clerk  of 
the  Senate  for  this  long  period ;  speak  of  his  absolutely 
incorruptible  character  and  nature ;  speak  of  the  great 
patience  and  kindness  of  his  heart, —  yet  in  our  hearts 
to-night,  over  and  above  all  other  qualities, 

"  His  strength  is  as  the  strength  of  ten, 
Because  his  heart  is  clean." 
[Great  applause.] 

The  President. —  I  think  that  approach  to  dulness  in  the 
speeches  in  the  Senate,  to  which  our  excellent  President  has 
referred,  must  belong  to  the  later  generation.  [Laughter.] 
We  had  a  way  of  curing  all  such  things  in  old  times.  We 
used  to  meet  together,  and  remain  about  fifteen  or  twenty 
minutes ;  and  then  we  had  no  difficulty  with  dulness,  for  we 
went  over  to  the  House,  where  it  was  lively. 

The  President  has  referred  to  the  past  Senates.  A  re- 
markable thing  is  this  to-night  that  we  have  with  us  a  Presi- 
dent of  the  Senate  who  occupied  the  chair  thirty-two  years 
ago,  who  is  now  past  eighty-four  years  of  age,  who  is  still  in 
business,  still  a  bank  director,  an  insurance  director,  and 
whose  voice  is  heard  very  often  in  different  parts  of  the 
State.  You  all  know  to  whom  I  refer ;  and  I  will,  without 
further  ado,  introduce  the  Hon.  Marshall  P.  Wilder. 

At  the  announcement  of  the  President,  the  entire  com- 
pany rose  to  their  feet,  and  greeted  Mr.  Wilder  with  very 
hearty  applause,  who  then  spoke  as  follows  :  — 

ADDRESS    OF    HON.    MARSHALL    P.    WILDER. 

Mr.  President, —  I  am  greatly  obliged  to  you  for  your  kind 
words,  and  to  you,  my  good  friends,  for  your  cordial  greet- 


i6 

ings  on  the  announcement  of  my  name.  Yes,  Mr.  President, 
it  is  true,  as  you  have  intimated,  that  I  am  somewhat  ad- 
vanced in  years  ;  but,  although  I  may  have  come  down  to 
you  from  a  former  century,  I  trust  I  shall  never  be  so  old 
as  not  to  remember  that  I  once  held  a  seat  in  the  Senate  of 
Massachusetts  [applause],  or  so  ungrateful  as  not  to  appre- 
ciate highly  the  many  other  favors  which  have  been  conferred 
on  me  by  my  friends,  during  a  long  and  protracted  life.  And 
now,  Mr.  President,  I  desire  to  return  your  compliment,  and 
to  say  we  owe  you  a  debt  of  gratitude  for  the  many  valuable 
services  which  you  have  rendered  to  our  city,  State,  and 
nation,  and  which  we  can  never  forget.  [Applause.]  Es- 
pecially glad  am  I  to  meet  again  the  distinguished  President 
of  the  Senate,  who  so  ably  and  gracefully  discharges  the 
duties  of  his  high  ofifice,  and  by  which  great  honor  is  con- 
ferred on  our  Commonwealth,  [Renewed  applause.]  Mr. 
President,  this  is  a  special  occasion  ;  and  I  am  most  happy 
to  be  here  and  to  participate  with  you  and  our  friends  in 
expressing  our  gratitude  to  our  worthy  guest  for  the  long 
and  valuable  services  he  has  rendered  to  our  State.  Few 
men  have  rendered  more  important  or  honorable  service  in 
her  behalf.  No  one,  since  the  organization  of  our  govern- 
ment, has  held  the  office  which  he  now  fills  for  so  long  a 
period  ;  and  I  am  sure,  gentlemen,  you  will  all  unite  with  me 
in  saying  that  no  one  has  discharged  the  various  duties 
thereof  with  more  courtesy,  fidelity,  and  ability.  [Applause.] 
Long  may  he  live  to  enjoy  the  confidence  and  esteem  to 
which  he  is  so  justly  entitled,  and  to  occupy  the  same  posi- 
tion, if  he  lives,  for  years  to  come.  [Applause.]  Mr.  Presi- 
dent, as  you  have  alluded  to  my  official  relations  with  the 
Senate  of  Massachusetts  in  former  years,  and,  standing  here 
to-day  as  I  do  after  an  absence  of  thirty-two  years  from  that 
body,  I  trust  it  may  not  be  considered  as  out  of  place  for 
me  to  refer  for  a  moment  to  that  time  and  some  of  the  inci- 
dents of  those  days.  That  Senate,  as  now,  was  composed 
of  forty  members.  Most  of  these  have  passed  over  the 
bridge  of  life.  Only  a  few  are  left  on  this  side  of  the  river, 
and  I  alone  am  here  to-night  to  tell  the  story  of  those  days. 


17 

Among  those  that  still  live,  I  rejoice  to  number  Henry  L, 
Dawes  and  William  B.  Washburn  [applause],  both  of  whom 
have  rendered  most  honorable  services  in  behalf  of  our 
State  and  nation,  and  whose  names  will  be  handed  down  to 
posterity  as  benefactors  of  mankind.  [Renewed  applause.] 
The  session  of  1850  was  held  in  a  time  of  great  political 
excitement,  when  the  anti-slavery  sentiment  of  New  Eng- 
land was  at  its  highest  point.  It  was  during  that  session 
that  Mr.  Webster  delivered  his  memorable  7th  of  March 
speech  in  the  Senate  of  the  United  States,  a  speech  which 
caused  great  discomfiture,  even  to  some  of  his  own  friends. 
So  great  was  this  that  I  may  state  to  you,  what  is  not  gen- 
erally known,  that  resolutions  censuring  him  were  presented 
in  that  Senate  ;  but,  thanks  to  a  merciful  Providence,  after 
Senators  had  slept  over  them  for  the  night,  they  were  with- 
drawn, and  thus  that  Senate  escaped  from  a  foul  stain  on  its 
records  which  would  have  disgraced  it  through  all  time. 
[Applause.]  Mr.  Webster's  speech  was  much  misunderstood 
and  misrepresented  at  that  time ;  but  let  me  say  to  you,  gen, 
tlemen,  that  I  have  read  that  speech  over  and  over  again- 
have  read  it  to-day,  and  I  cannot,  for  my  life,  put  my  finger 
on  a  single  line  but  what  is  perfectly  consistent  with  the 
patriotism,  loyalty,  and  integrity  which  characterized  his 
whole  political  life.  But  time  sets  all  things  right  at  last ; 
and  I  think,  if  the  public  voice  of  to-day  could  be  expressed, 
it  would  be  pronounced  as  one  of  the  most  self-sacrificing 
and  patriotic  speeches  of  that  immortal  man,  New  England's 
greatest  son,  America's  most  illustrious  statesman.  [Ap- 
plause.] Mr.  President,  there  are  many  distinguished  gen- 
tlemen present  who  are  to  address  this  assembly,  and  I  will 
bring  my  remarks  to  a  close.  You  will  permit  me,  however, 
to  say  again  that  I  am  very  thankful  to  be  here  and  to  par- 
ticipate in  the  privileges  and  pleasures  of  this  occasion,  here 
to  meet  so  many  old  friends  with  some  of  whom  I  have  been 
acquainted  for  many  years,  here  to  exchange  congratulations 
on  the  continuance  of  our  lives.  It  warms  up  the  old  heart, 
the  pulse  beats  stronger,  the  blood  courses  more  freely  in 
ray  veins,  and    I   live   over  again    the   life  of   former  days. 


[Applause.]  But,  gentlemen,  I  cannot  disguise  the  fact 
that  my  clays  of  pilgrimage  on  earth  are  nearly  ended.  I 
have  long  since  passed  the  summit  of  the  hill  of  life,  and 
have  descended  down  its  western  slope  nearly  to  the  sunset 
line  ;  but,  while  life  lasts,  I  shall  never  cease  to  thank  the 
Giver  of  all  good  that  he  cast  my  lot  in  the  midst  of  so 
many  friends,  and  has  permitted  me  to  live  for  so  long  a  time 
under  the  benign  influence  of  those  blessed  principles  which 
have  made  our  nation  what  it  is,  the  first  great  free  and 
independent  republic  on  earth,  the  strongest  and  best  gov- 
ernment in  the  world  !     [Loud  applause.] 

The  President. — The  department  of  the  government  of 
Massachusetts  in  which  the  people  have  the  most  confi- 
dence, and  to  which  they  hold  with  extreme  tenacity,  is  that 
of  the  judiciary.  One  of  our  Supreme  Court  judges  has 
been  placed  upon  the  bench  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the 
United  States.  His  appointment  gave  pleasure  and  satis- 
faction throughout  the  nation.  I  do  not  think  that  the  list 
is  exhausted  ;  and,  if  our  President  in  his  wisdom  cannot 
find  a  judge  to  fill  the  place  which  is  now  vacant,  he  can 
come  to  Massachusetts  again,  and  we  can  give  him  another 
man  to  fill  it.  [Applause.]  I  shall  invite  Judge  Pitman  to 
answer  for  himself  in  regard  to  that  matter. 

Judge  Pitman  was  greeted  with  hearty  applause,  and 
spoke  as  follows  :  — 

ADDRESS    OF    HON.    ROBERT    C.    PITMAN. 

Mr.  President  and  Gejitlemen, —  I  hardly  know  which 
startles  me  the  most,  the  very  flattering  introduction,  or  the 
fact  that  I  am  brought  into  such  close  proximity  to  my  ven- 
erable friend  who  has  just  addressed  you.  But,  startling 
as  it  may  be  to  be  called  on  to  address  you  next  to  the 
venerable  ex-President  Wilder,  who  rejoices  in  the  age  of 
eighty-four  years,  I  suppose  I  am  in  my  right  place.  For, 
of  the  Presidents  of  the  Senate  who  come  within  the  favored 
limit  of  twenty-five  years  covering  Mr.  Gifford's  term  of 
office,   I  stand  next  among   the  living  to  Governor  Clafiin. 


19 

Some  special  reminiscences  are  awakened  when  I  recollect 
that  the  Presidents  between  Governor  Claflin  and  myself 
have  all  departed.  There  is  Governor  Clifford,  of  glorious 
memory;  there  is  President  Field,  honored  for  so  many 
years  ;  there  is  Joseph  A.  Pond,  falling  in  the  maturity  of 
his  powers ;  there  is  the  genial  friend  of  every  man  who 
was  in  the  Senate,  George  Brastow  ;  and  I  come  next  in 
order.  I  think,  gentlemen,  although  I  am  not  quite  posi- 
tive, in  looking  over  the  list,  there  are  not  more  than  nine 
living  Presidents  of  the  Senate,  of  whom  we  have  six  here 
to-night. 

Dr.  Johnson  says.  When  there  are  a  great  manv  people, 
they  come  out  of  church  slowly:  when  there  are  a  few,  they 
come  out  easily.  So  it  is  with  ideas.  When  there  is  much 
crowding  the  mind,  it  is  difficult  to  express  it.  I  trust  I 
shall  not  be  slow ;  but,  if  you  find  a  confusion  of  ideas,  you 
must  attribute  it  to  the  multiplicity  of  topics  which  crowd 
upon  me. 

One  of  the  first  thoughts  that  crowd  upon  my  mind  is. 
We  have  lost  an  anniversary  ;  and  this  is  an  attempt,  in 
part,  to  make  up  for  the  loss.  A  year  and  a  half  ago  there 
was  an  anniversary  which  should  have  been  memorable  in 
every  part  of  Massachusetts,  it  being  then  one  hundred  years 
since  the  Constitution  of  Massachusetts  was  adopted ;  and, 
though  it  is  not  actually  so,  it  would  seem  that  nobody  in 
the  Commonwealth  of  Massachusetts  except  our  good  Gov- 
ernor Long  remembered  that  fact,  and  a  few  men  who  were 
gathered  in  the  council  chamber  —  and  I  esteem  it  an  honor 
to  have  been  one  of  them  —  to  listen  to  the  prayer  of  Presi- 
dent Hopkins.  That  was  all  the  celebration  Massachusetts 
afforded  of  an  accomplished  fact  so  glorious  as  that, —  one 
hundred  years  of  freedom  and  prosperity  under  a  constitu- 
tion like  the  Constitution  of  Massachusetts.  I  do  not  know 
what  possessed  the  Legislature  of  Massachusetts, —  whether 
it  was  the  shadow  of  General  Butler  in  the  distance  to  call 
them  to  account,  if  a  few  dollars  were  appropriated  for  that 
purpose.  [Laughter  and  applause.]  What  a  glorious  oppor- 
tunity to  have  gathered  at  the  State  House  every  living  rep- 


2D 

resentative  of  every  department  of  the  government  of  Massa- 
chusetts (the  number  is  not  too  large  even  for  the  House), 
and  to  have  celebrated  such  an  event  as  that  !  We  have 
celebrated  every  skirmish,  almost,  in  the  war  of  the  Revolu- 
tion ;  but  here  is  an  event  which  goes  beyond  the  end  of  the 
war,  goes  back  even  to  the  time  when  Massachusetts  laid 
the  foundations  of  her  imperishable  prosperity,  and  framed 
a  constitution  which  no  civilized  government  can  surpass. 
But  that  opportunity  has  passed.  It  is  something  to  gather 
the  representatives  for  twenty-five  years  of  even  one  depart- 
ment of  the  government. 

Something  has  been  said  of  the  department  of  the  govern- 
ment which  I  have  the  honor  to  represent,  and  perhaps  I 
may  be  allowed  to  speak  for  the  Superior  Court.  We  have 
upon  our  bench  now  four  who  have  been  members  of  the 
Senate,  and  I  think  they  will  agree  with  me  that  a  very  val- 
uable part  of  our  training  has  come  from  the  experience  in 
making  laws  which  we  had  there.  Three  other  members  of 
our  court,  making  a  majority  of  the  whole,  have  seen  service 
in  the  House.  So  you  see  that  Massachusetts  in  her  legisla- 
tive halls  trains  men  for  all  departments  of  her  government. 
But  I  must  differ  from  my  worthy  friend,  whom  I  honor,  as 
I  ought,  who  presides  here,  in  one  or  two  matters.  It  would 
not  be  a  Senate,  if  there  were  no  difference  and  no  debate. 
I  wish  to  say  to  the  Legislature  of  Massachusetts,  and  say 
without  the  bias  of  any  personal  feeling,  that  not  only  do  I 
esteem  your  branch  of  the  government  the  equal  in  honor 
and  importance  of  any  other  branch  of  the  government,  but 
I  say  to  you.  Value  your  own  position  highly,  respect  your- 
selves, continue  your  sessions  until  you  have  finished  the 
public  business.  [Applause.]  Do  not  mind  the  cheap  cen- 
sures of  the  newspapers,  or  the  snarling  of  your  competitors 
whom  you  have  distanced  in  the  opinion  of  your  fellow- 
citizens.  [Applause.]  Remember  what  Tennyson  says, 
"Raw  haste  half-sister  to  delay."  Hasty  legislation  results 
in  doubt  and  confusion,  as  those  who  have  to  administer  the 
laws  ascertain.     [Applause.] 

But  I  am  afraid  I  shall  be  borne  away  from  the  object  of 


21 

the  occasion.  [Voices,  "  Go  on!"]  I  know  the  sentiment 
of  my  excellent  friend,  the  Clerk  ;  and  I  know  that  he  will  say 
"  Amen  "  to  what  I  have  just  expressed. 

Mr.  Gifford. —  Amen.     [Loud  laughter  and  applause.] 

Judge  Pitman. —  If  I  might  venture  to  criticise  my 
younger  friends,  I  would  say  that  it  has  been  their  fear  that 
somebody  would  think  they  had  better  be  in  a  hurry  to  close 
their  session  that  has  sometimes  deteriorated  their  legisla- 
tion.  I  remember  a  few  years  ago  calling  the  attention  of 
the  chairman  of  the  judiciary  of  the  House  to  the  unconsti- 
tutionality of  a  law.  The  reply  was,  that  it  was  too  late  in 
the  session  even  to  attend  to  the  repeal  of  an  unconstitutional 
law ;  the  consequence  of  which  was  that  a  brace  of  criminals 
soon  afterward  convicted  of  a  felonious  offence  were  dis- 
charged from  the  house  of  correction  by  a  decision  of  the 
Supreme  Court. 

But,  lest  I  forget  and  be  driven  from  the  subject  by  the 
modesty  of  my  friend,  I  desire  to  say  that,  so  ably  and  satis- 
factorily has  he  discharged  the  duties  of  his  office  during  his 
long  term  of  service,  Mr.  Gifford  would  have  the  vote  of 
every  Senator  who  has  served  during  that  time.  I  remember 
after  I  was  elected  President,  in  my  confusion  the  first  day, 
I  put  the  vote  in  this  form,  "  Senators  in  favor  will  say, 
'Aye':  those  contrary-minded  will  say,  'No.'"  I  soon 
received  a  note,  the  handwriting  of  which  I  easilv  recog- 
nized, saying  that  Senators  were  not  supposed  to  be  contrary- 
minded.  [Laughter  and  applause.]  I  think,  if  any  Senator 
was  to  vote  against  a  vote  of  thanks  to  Mr.  Gifford,  that 
Senator  might  well  be  called  contrary-minded.  [Renewed 
applause.] 

Not  only  did  Mr.  Gifford  never  make  an  enemy,  but  he 
never  said  an  unkind  word.  I  never  saw  him  when  he  was 
not  as  calm  and  unruffled  as  a  morning  in  June, —  that  morn- 
ing in  June,  you  know,  that  always  foretells  a  pleasant  and 
long  day.  And  so  I  trust  that  the  measure  of  his  life  will 
be  so  prolonged  that  he  shall  have  that  length  of  life  that 
shall  fully  satisfy  him.     [Applause.] 


22 

The  President. —  I  trust  my  friend,  the  Judge,  will 
pardon  me  if  I  suggest  that  the  people  sometimes  think  the 
Judiciary  is  not  in  a  great  hurry  to  decide  their  cases. 
[Laughter.]  We  have  received  from  a  former  President  of 
the  Senate,  my  predecessor,  a  telegram,  which  I  think  should 
be  read  to  you.     It  comes  from  Prague,  in  Austria  :  — 

Bishop,  President  of  the  Senate,  Boston,  Mass.:  Heartiest,  warm- 
est greetings  to  friends  of  other  days.  Charles  A.  Phelps. 

I  notice  on  my  left  a  gentleman  who  has  watched  the 
clock  very  closely,  as  he  intends  to  start  soon  for  Washing- 
ton ;  and  I  have  been  even  afraid  that  the  railroad  would  take 
him  in  spite  of  us.  Of  all  departments  in  the  government 
which  I  might  have  said  is  least  respected  in  Washington 
is  the  Agricultural  [laughter] ;  the  one  that  Senators  and 
Representatives,  remembering  their  constituents  at  home, 
and  knowing  that  something  ought  to  be  done  for  the  agri- 
cultural interests,  are  always  ready  to  vote  any  amount  of 
money  for,  though  they  would  sneer  privately,  and  some- 
times publicly,  about  the  uses  made  of  it,  such  as  raising  tea 
in  South  Carolina,  and  bringing  yachts  from  some  other  part 
of  the  globe  to  travel  over  the  mountains  with,  and  so  on. 
But,  finally,  they  came  to  Massachusetts  to  select  a  Commis- 
sioner of  Agriculture,  and  they  pitched  upon  exactly  the 
right  man.  [Applause.]  The  whole  country  applauded  as 
much  as  they  did  when  Judge  Gray  was  selected  for  the 
Supreme  Court ;  and  I  do  not  know  that  he  will  ever  be  able 
to  get  out  of  the  office  until  he  is  removed  to  another  sphere, 
judging  from  what  we  have  seen  since  he  has  been  in.  But 
you  know  more  about  him  than  I  do,  and  I  know  everything 
to  his  praise.  He  was  with  me  in  Congress  four  years,  and 
always  stood  by  me  in  every  effort.  We  worked  together 
and  we  lived  together ;  and  I  cherish  his  friendship  most 
heartily,  as  I  know  you  do.  I  will  not  say  further  in  his 
praise,  but  present  to  you  the  Hon.  George  B,  Loring. 
[Loud  applause.] 


23 


ADDRESS    OF    HON.    GEORGE    B.    LORING. 

Mr.  President, —  I  certainly  feel  under  great  obligation 
to  you  for  the  interesting,  suggestive,  and  significant 
introduction  you  have  given  me  to  my  Senatorial  friends 
this  evening,  that  I  am  just  fitted  to  fill  the  most  insignifi- 
cant place  in  the  government.  [Laughter.]  It  is  a 
compliment  so  unusual,  so  rich,  that  I  shall  treasure  it  to 
my  dying  day.  [Renewed  laughter.]  I  know  now,  sir, 
just  exactly  what  I  am  worth.  I  have  never  been  able  to 
find  out  before  during  a  long  and  useful  life.  [Laughter.] 
I  think,  sir,  you  and  I  have  escaped  very  well  this  evening. 
I  sit  here  among  a  class  of  gentlemen  who  have  been 
alluded  to  by  the  present  President  of  the  Senate  as  his 
venerable  predecessors ;  and  he  did  it  so  gently  and  so 
sweetly  that  I  rather  felt  proud  of  my  position  here.  I  felt 
I  was  fortunate  to  escape  that  appeal:  "Venerable  men, 
you  have  come  down  to  us  from  a  former  generation. 
Heaven  has  bounteously  lengthened  out  your  life  that  you 
may  behold  this  joyous  day."  When  I  felt  myself  free 
from  that  charge,  and  felt  that  there  was  one  little  spark 
of  youth  remaining  for  Judge  Pitman  and  myself,  I 
congratulated  myself  that  I  had  been  here,  and  shall  return 
to  my  duty  with  renewed  energy,  and  endeavor  to  make 
this  most  insignificant  department  of  mine  worthy  of  a 
graduate  of  the  Massachusetts  Senate.     [Applause.] 

I  have  great  respect  for  the  Commonwealth  of  Massa- 
chusetts, and  always  had.  I  do  not  mean  to  say,  situated 
now  as  I  am,  that  distance  lends  enchantment  to  the  view  ; 
for  she  certainly  looks  more  charming  and  more  delightful 
when  I  am  here  than  she  possibly  can  at  any  distance. 
Wherever  I  go,  north,  south,  east,  or  west,  I  find  the  marks 
and  footsteps  of  the  old  Commonwealth  so  continually 
that  I  am  constantly  reminded  of  the  State  of  my  birth  ; 
more  than  that,  I  am  reminded  of  the  high  service  which 
I  have  performed  here  in  the  State,  and  of  the  higher 
service  which  my  friends  and  associates  have  been  enabled 
to  perform  before  me.     Massachusetts  has  many  institutions 


24 

of  which  she  may  well  be  proud.  She  has  her  Harvard 
College,  her  Williams  College,  and  other  centres  of  learning 
on  every  hand ;  and  those  of  us  who  are  graduates  of  those 
schools  feel  proud  of  the  position  we  have  secured  by  our 
associations.  She  has  also  her  penitentiaries,  which  I  do 
not  think  it  is  a  hardship  to  get  into.  [Laughter.]  I 
congratulate  my  fellow-citizens  on  the  fact  that  no  decree  of 
the  judge  who  sits  before  me,  and  no  jury,  can  send  a  man  in 
this  State  into  an  uncomfortable  prison.  [Laughter.]  We 
have  our  military  organizations,  which  serve  well  in  wars  and 
fight  well  in  peace.  We  have  our  Hoosac  Tunnel,  the 
model  of  all  the  great  bores  of  this  land  [laughter],  an 
institution  from  which  every  graduate  has  gone  forth 
into  the  larger  service  of  life,  understanding  exactly  how 
far  public  works  can  go  and  how  far  he  can  go  in  imposing 
upon  the  good  will  of  the  American  people.  We  have  a 
variety  of  institutions  here,  of  which  we  are  all  proud.  We 
have  our  academies ;  and  I  see  here  and  there,  scattered  in 
this  hall,  graduates  of  those  old  schools  who  have  never  yet 
forgotten  the  stern  and  painful  discipline  imposed  upon 
them  in  their  early  days  by  all  these  institutions  in  the 
State  of  Massachusetts.  And  I  defy  any  man  in  this  land 
to  point  to  one  more  important,  more  significant,  and  whose 
graduates  have  held  higher  honor  than  the  Senate  of  the 
State  of  Massachusetts.     [Applause.] 

I  see  here  men  who  have  distinguished  themselves  in 
every  walk  in  life,  and  who  have  graduated  in  that  branch 
of  our  government.  Here,  we  have  Governors,  ex-Gov- 
ernors, so  called,  who  carried  to  their  private  homes  all  the 
honors  they  have  earned  by  their  hard  service  in  life,  and 
who,  having  served  their  State  well,  have  upheld  her 
honor,  her  loyalty,  and  her  glory  on  the  battle-fields,  and 
have  won  for  her  additional  renown  in  their  service  in  the 
great  war  for  the  Union.  [Applause.]  We  have  here 
gentlemen  who  have  done  their  service  well  everywhere. 

When  I  went  to  Congress,  I  found  myself  surrounded  by 
Massachusetts  Senators.  I  found  in  the  Judiciary  Com- 
mittee one  member,  chairman  of  the  Judiciary  Committee  in 


25 

the  Massachusetts  Senate  when  I  was  president.  I  waited 
a  little  while,  and  I  found  another  one  turning  up  on  the 
Judiciary  Committee;  and  it  seemed  as  though  Congress 
itself  could  not  get  along  without  the  influence  of  the 
Massachusetts  Senate.  It  was  omnipresent.  It  seemed 
omnipotent.  It  was  the  great  water-wheel  that  seemed  to 
move  the  machinery  of  the  national  government. 

Therefore,  I  think  we  have  a  right  to  be  proud  of  the 
Senate  of  Massachusetts.  When  the  State  of  Massachusetts 
was  assailed  in  Congress,  and  I  endeavored,  in  my  humble 
way,  to  defend  the  old  Commonwealth  against  the  attacks 
that  were  made  upon  her  suffrage  policy,  upon  her  loyalty 
in  the  late  war,  upon  her  position  in  history,  the  last  fact 
that  I  stated  that  won  the  admiration  and  esteem  of  the 
House  of  Representatives  was  this  :  when  the  Senate  of 
Massachusetts  passes  into  the  chamber  where  its  delibera- 
tions are  conducted,  it  passes  beneath  the  drum  that  beat 
the  reveille,  and  the  musket  that  blazed  in  the  line,  when 
the  power  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  was  established  on  this 
continent,  and  the  American  flag  was  carried  far  on  beyond 
the  waters  of  the  Labradors,  almost  to  the  frozen  seas. 
[Applause.]  The  last  thing  that  won  their  esteem,  and  put 
the  old  Commonwealth  where  she  should  be,  was  the  fact 
that  the  Senate  of  Massachusetts  assembled  under  those 
circumstances.  I  did  not  say  anything  about  the  House. 
[Laughter.]  I  did  not  say  anything  about  the  Council.  I  said 
we  had  good  and  righteous  judges  ;  and  they  who  opposed  us 
said,  "We  have  good  and  righteous  judges."  I  said,  "We 
have  an  able  Executive"  ;  and  they  said,  "  So  have  we."  But, 
when  I  began  to  beat  that  old  drum,  and  fire  off  the  old 
gun,  down  they  came  [applause]  ;  and  they  wished  they  had 
such  a  drum  and  such  a  gun.  And  I  said,  "  You  will,  if 
you  live  long  enough."  Longevity  is  a  great  thing  in  this 
world.  I  am  happy  to  see  that  some  Senators  in  the 
Senate  of  Massachusetts  seem  determined  to  follow  in  the 
same  path. 

I  think  the  Senate  of  Massachusetts  is  a  convenient 
body  to  belong  to.     There  are  just  enough  members  to  be 


26 

sociable,  just  enough  to  make  a  noise,  just  enough  to  have 
trouble  in,  and  just  enough  to  quiet  the  whole  trouble,  and 
come  out  in  a  dignified  and  proper  manner.  Tell  me,  if  the 
House  of  the  last  twenty-five  years  could  get  up  such  a 
dinner  as  this  [laughter],  such  an  assembly  as  this.  Why, 
this  hall  would  be  crowded  and  overrun  by  the  ambitious 
young  statesmen  that  have  served  this  Commonwealth  so 
well.  Call  together  the  membership  of  the  Council  of 
this  State  for  the  last  twenty-five  years,  and  there  would 
not  be  enough  to  fill  one  table;  but,  when  you  come  to  the 
Senate,  whose  number  was  fixed  to  forty  members  by  the 
Constitutional  Convention  in  1820,  when  Mr.  Webster  said 
there  were  so  few  men  in  the  State  that  had  any  money  it 
must  be  small,  and  consequently  they  fixed  the  number  at 
forty,  it  certainly  is  the  most  convenient,  most  admirable, 
most  successful  number  ever  heard  of.  [Applause.]  You 
can  tie  forty, —  you  cannot  tie  forty-one  ! 

Now,  in  the  midst  of  all  the  successful  endeavors  of  the 
Senate  of  Massachusetts,  we  have  had  a  Clerk  here  for 
twenty-five  years ;  and  I  am  not  at  all  sorry  that  the 
Senators  who  have  served  with  him  were  anxious  to  take 
advantage  of  this  anniversary  of  his,  and  come  together 
in  kindly  accord  around  the  festive  board.  Why,  he  has  set 
us  a  good  example  in  all  good  feeling.  He  is  an  amiable 
gentleman.  He  makes  no  quarrels  with  anybody,  and 
keeps  himself  always  in  condition  to  dine  with  the  Senators 
on  all  occasions.  So  far  as  I  know,  he  is  an  admirable 
example  in  that  respect,  so  that,  as  a  social  gentleman,  he 
is  the  model  Clerk  of  the  Massachusetts  Senate.  He 
brought  into  the  Senate  of  Massachusetts  twenty-five  years 
ago  the  spirit  of  the  old  colony  from  whence  he  came ;  and 
I  have  no  doubt  the  courage  of  Miles  Standish  has  been 
coursing  in  his  veins  from  that  day  to  this,  and  I  can  see 
that  the  beauty  of  Priscilla  Mullins  is  in  his  face.  [Laugh- 
ter and  applause.]  I  know  that  he  has  been  true  to  the 
doctrines  that  were  established  at  Plymouth  by  the  Pilgrims 
of  1620.  I  am  sure  that,  in  all  his  devotion  to  principle,  he 
has  manifested  a  resolution  and  determination  which  he  got 


nowhere  else  but  on  that  sacred  spot.  Did  you  ever  know 
him  to  waver,  when  I  have  appealed  to  him  to  know 
whether,  in  resisting  the  claims  of  the  House  in  regard 
to  originating  bills,  the  Senate  was  in  the  right  ?  I  never 
knew  him  to  say  the  House  was  in  the  right.  [Applause.] 
I  never  knew  a  man  so  loyal.  Why,  he  would  always  stand 
by  us  ;  and,  when  the  Senators  were  called  into  the  House 
in  convention  assembled,  with  what  an  air  of  magnificent 
triumph  he  has  led  the  way  for  the  President  and  his 
followers,  as  if  to  say,  "  Here  we  are :  see  what  a  dignified 
body  of  gentlemen  we  are."  [Laughter.]  I  do  not  wonder 
the  Senators  all  love  him,  and  desire  to  have  him  continue 
in  office  as  long  as  he  lives  ;  and  I  agree  with  them  that 
a  more  thoroughly  model  Clerk  has  never  been  known  in 
the  Massachusetts  Senate.  I  am  sure  that,  as  time  goes  on, 
he  will  find,  if  he  desires  to  find  it,  that  he  is  entitled  to 
that  benediction  (I  do  not  know  that  he  desires  it,  I  do  not 
know  that  he  has  ever  contemplated  the  end,  or  ever  will 
[laughter],  I  do  not  ask  him  to),  but,  when  he  does,  I  remind 
him,  he  is  perfectly  entitled  to  the  benediction,  "  Mark  the 
perfect  man,  and  behold  the  upright ;  for  the  end  of  that 
man  is  peace."     [Loud  applause.] 

The  President. —  See  what  a  secretary  agriculture  will 
have,  when  the  department  is  brought  into  the  Cabinet. 
[Applause.]  The  oldest  of  the  former  Presidents  of  the 
Senate  now  living  is  the  Hon.  Josiah  Ouincy.  He  was 
invited  to  be  present  with  us  this  evening,  and  we  were 
in  some  hopes  he  would  be  here  ;  but  he  has  finally  deter- 
mined, although  in  good  health,  that  his  great  age  will  not 
permit  him.  We  all  know  his  service  to  the  Commonwealth 
in  past  time,  what  he  did  for  the  Western  railroad  and  for 
many  other  enterprises ;  and  we  honor  him.  Those  who 
know  him  best  esteem  him  most  highly.  As  he  is  the 
oldest  of  former  Presidents,  and  cannot  be  with  us,  it  is  my 
pleasure  to  introduce  to  you  one  of  the  younger,  who  has 
filled  the  chair  of  President  with  great  acceptance  and  with 
great  eloquence.     I  have   now  the    pleasure  of   introducing 


28 

without  further  words  the  Hon.  Horace  H.  Coolidge.     [Ap- 
plause.] 

ADDRESS    OF    HON.    HORACE    H.    COOLIDGE. 

Mr.  President, —  It  has  been  my  fortune  many  times  to 
attend  public  dinners  in  honor  of  those  who  have  served 
their  country  well.  Sometimes,  I  have  spoken  ;  but  upon  no 
occasion  have  I  been  called  upon  to  do  so,  when  I  have 
responded  with  so  earnest  a  feeling  as  comes  now  from  my 
heart  in  honoring  the  guest  of  this  evening.  It  has  been 
given  me  to  have  been  associated  with  him  officially  perhaps 
a  longer  number  of  years  than  any  gentleman  now  present. 
I  entered  the  House  in  1865,  and  remained  there  three  years, 
and  from  the  committees  on  which  I  served  learned  then  to 
know  the  Clerk  of  the  Senate.  In  1869,  I  entered  the 
Senate ;  and  no  one  received  me  more  cordially  than  the 
Clerk.  In  1870,  I  was  chosen  to  the  Presidency,  and  here 
let  me  give  a  little  incident.  Prior  to  the  assembling  of  the 
Senate, —  the  night  before,  indeed, —  a  caucus  of  the  whole 
Senate  was  called.  By  their  kindness,  I  was  unanimously 
nominated ;  but  I  remember  that  a  Senator,  so  much  and  so 
truly  regretted  by  me  and  all  who  knew  him,  the  Hon.  Ellis 
W.  Morton,  got  up  and  said  that  for  the  benefit  of  the  new 
Senators  he  would  state  that  the  Senate  of  Massachusetts 
could  never  be  properly  organized  without  the  unanimous 
nomination  of  Stephen  N.  Gifford,  as  Clerk.  [Applause.] 
The  whole  Senate  agreed  with  him,  and  the  thing  was  done. 
From  that  day  to  this, —  yes,  and  for  years  before, —  that  ver- 
dict was  always  given.  And  why .?  Because  Massachusetts  is 
an  honest  State.  God  bless  her  !  And  Gifford  has  shown 
himself,  for  twenty-five  years,  an  honest  officer,  an  honest 
patron,  and  an  honest  man.  Is  there  more  to  ask  for  in  this 
grand  old  Commonwealth }  Let  me  say  to  you  all,  my 
friends,  who  have  assembled  to  do  honor  to  our  beloved 
guest,  that  not  one  of  you  can  so  appreciate  and  love  him 
as  those  of  us  who  have  sat  in  the  chair  of  the  Senate,  and 
who  know,  as  no  others  can,  our  obligations  to  him,  so  mod- 
estly and  so  simply  rendered,  and  yet  always  with  a  learning 


29 

and  devotion  to  his  branch  of  the  General  Court  which 
could  not  but  impress  us  each  and  all.  I  cannot  conclude 
without  alluding  to  one  trait  in  our  dear  friend's  character 
that  impressed  me  more  than  all.  He  is,  was,  and  always 
will  be,  as  I  most  earnestly  hope,  a  man  of  most  pronounced 
convictions  upon  every  subject,  political  or  otherwise.  And 
yet  no  man  who  has  ever  met  him  during  his  whole  twenty- 
five  years  of  service  can  say  that  he  ever  attempted  to 
interfere  unduly  with  legislation.  On  the  contrary,  I  had 
the  opportunity  for  three  years,  as  President,  to  watch  the 
patience  with  which  he  listened  to  every  man  who  came  to 
that  desk  of  his,  so  open  to  interruption  that  it  would  have 
driven  many  of  us  wild,  never  ruffled,  always  ready  to 
answer  all  questions,  knowing  Vvell  that  all  those  interrup- 
tions would  cost  him  half  a  night  of  sleep,  yet  always  the 
same  calm  gentleman  you  see  him  now.  Do  we  not  do  our- 
selves good  this  night  to  honor  him,  the  simple,  modest  gen- 
tleman who  has  done  so  much  for  us  ;  and  am  I  not  right  in 
applying  to  him  these  words  of  Tennyson .''  — 

"  For  who  can  always  act  ?  but  he 

To  whom  a  thousand  memories  call, 
Not  being  less,  but  more  than  all 
The  gentleness  he  seemed  to  be, 

"  Best  seemed  the  thing  he  was,  and  join'd 
Each  office  of  the  social  hour 
To  noble  manners,  as  the  flower 
And  native  growth  of  noble  mind; 

"  Nor  ever  narrowness  or  spite, 
Or  villain  fancy  fleeting  by. 
Drew  in  the  expression  of  an  eye, 
When  God  and  Nature  met  in  light ; 

♦'  And  thus  he  bore  without  abuse 

The  grand  old  name  of  gentleman, 
Defamed  by  every  charlatan 
And  soiled  with  all  ignoble  use." 

[Applause.] 


30 

The  President. —  I  am  reminded  that  the  time  is  passing 
on,  and  some  of  you  may  be  obliged  to  leave.  Our  friend, 
the  guest  of  the  evening,  has  been  working  his  way  down 
the  list  as  far  as  he  can  ;  but  I  shall  not  let  him  go  any 
longer,  and  therefore  I  shall  present  to  you  Stephen  N. 
Gifford,  Clerk  of  the  Senate. 

As  Mr.  Gifford  rose  in  response  to  the  introduction  by 
the  President,  he  was  greeted  with  hearty  cheers  and  ap- 
plause, the  entire  company  rising  on  their  feet.  When  the 
applause  had  subsided,  Mr.  Gifford  said  :  — 

ADDRESS  OF  STEPHEN  N.  GIFFORD. 

I  think,  friends,  if  anybody  had  said  to  me  this  morning 
that  there  were  as  many  men  in  the  State  of  Massa- 
chusetts who  had  ever  been  my  constituents  as  are  here 
present,  I  never  would  have  believed  it ;  and  I  know  that 
there  are  not  the  same  number  of  good-looking  men  in  the 
United  States.     [Applause.] 

There  is  only  one  man  that  I  have  any  spite  against  here, 
and  I  want  to  free  my  mind  in  regard  to  him  for  this  reason. 
In  one  of  his  valedictory  addresses,  he  alluded  to  me  as 
"  the  venerable  Clerk  of  the  Senate."  I  looked  in  the  regis- 
ter, and  I  found  that  he  was  just  two  years  younger  than  I. 
[Laughter.]  Now,  I  did  not  like  it.  Still,  I  am  old  enough  : 
there  is  no  doubt  about  that.     [Applause.] 

But  I  think  I  may  say  it  would  require  a  more  eloquent 
tongue  than  mine  fitly  to  respond  to  the  many  kind  things 
that  have  been  said  here  to-night.  I  feel  as  if  I  had  been 
travelling  in  some  far-off  land,  and,  after  years  of  absence, 
had  returned  to  my  friends  once  more ;  and,  as  I  meet  the  old 
familiar  faces,  I  see  the  same  genial  smile,  I  hear  the  same 
kindly  greeting,  I  feel  the  same  hearty  shake  of  the  hand  of 
days  long  ago.  I  look  around  for  other  familiar  faces,  and  I 
find  them  not ;  but  instead,  in  my  mind's  eye,  I  see  a  long, 
long  procession  passing  down  the  dark  valley  and  beyond 
that  bourne  whence  no  traveller  returns.  In  that  procession, 
I  see  men  who  sat  by  your  side,  men  who  worked  shoulder 
to  shoulder  with  you  for  the  honor  of  the  old  Commonwealth, 


31 

men  who  devoted  their  best  energies  to  make  their  native 
State  a  model  Commonwealth,  to  make  her  what  she  is,  the 
Queen  of  New  England.  In  that  procession,  I  see  a  Clifford, 
the  jurist,  the  Governor,  your  President,  Wentworth  of  Mid- 
dlesex, Bailey  of  Fitchburg,  second  to  no  man  in  ability  in 
the  County  of  Worcester, —  "  he  was  my  friend,  faithful  and 
just  to  me," — Pond  of  Middlesex,  a  born  presiding  officer, 
Brastow  of  Middlesex,  Field  of  Berkshire,  Loring  of  Suffolk, 
who  was  unimpeachable  on  a  question  of  law.  And  then 
there  was  that  Bayard  of  Suffolk,  young  Morton,  a  man 
without  fear  and  without  reproach,  than  whom  no  man  ever 
had  a  brighter  future,  had  not  disease  marked  him  for  its 
own.  He  faltered,  died,  and,  like  Milton's  Lycidas,  he  was 
dead  ere  his  prime  ;  and,  to  those  who  bore  him  to  his  grave, 
no  fitter  words  could  be  said  than  those  of  the  poet,  "  Tread 
lightly,  comrades,  for  'tis  a  man  ye  bear." 

Those  who  knew  him  will  fully  appreciate  what  I  have 
said';  and  the  pleasing  memories  that  cluster  round  the 
names  of  those  men  that  were  here,  men  that  we  saw  every 
day,  will  still  remain.  It  is  a  sad  reflection,  and  humiliating 
as  well,  that  every  day's  experience  teaches  us  that  it  mat- 
ters not  how  exalted  a  position  a  man  holds,  no  matter  how 
many  vast  enterprises  seem  to  rest  on  his  shoulders,  bound 
up  in  the  issues  of  his  life,  the  existence  of  a  nation  depend- 
ing on  his  presence  in  its  councils, —  the  summons  comes,  he 
falls,  and  is  gone,  and  the  words,  "  The  king  is  dead  !  Long 
live  the  king !  "  are  as  true  to-day  as  when  said  in  ancient 
times.  The  ranks  close  up.  "  Some  short  bustle  is  caused, 
a  few  inquiries,  and  the  solemn  brood  of  care  plod  on." 
But  it  must  be  so.  Yet,  the  world's  work  must  be  done.  We 
must  do  it.  "Duty  exists,  immutably  survives."  Gentlemen, 
twenty-five  years  is  a  long  time  in  a  man's  life.  A  man 
is  fortunate  to  have  lived  that  time  in  active  life,  more  fortu- 
nate to  have  lived  those  years  in  Massachusetts,  still  more 
to  have  lived  that  time  in  the  United  States.  Twenty-five 
years  ago,  we  heard  the  mutterings  of  the  tempest  which 
was  soon  to  burst  with  relentless  fury  upon  our  nation.  For 
four  long  years,  we  saw  the  spectacle  of  what   the   immortal 


32 

Webster  so  feared, —  States  dissevered,  discordant,  belliger- 
ent ;  but,  with  the  ability  of  our  statesmen  and  by  the 
strong  arms  of  the  Boys  in  Blue,  the  old  flag  once  more 
floats  over  a  United  States,  not  a  star  erased  nor  a  stripe 
polluted,  bearing  on  all  its  shining  folds  those  glorious  words 
in  their  fullest  meaning,  "  All  men  are  created  equal ;  lib- 
erty and  union,  one  and  forever,  inseparable." 

I  believe  any  man  who  takes  public  office,  takes  it  for  the 
accommodation  of  the  public,  not  to  accommodate  himself 
[applause] ;  and  I  believe,  further,  that,  when  there  is  any 
thing  to  do,  he  should  go  and  do  it  and  say  as  little  about  it 
as  possible.  [Applause.]  Every  man  in  office  may  have 
cause  for  irritation.  Every  man  who  has  ever  held  a  public 
office,  and  especially  the  one  which  I  have  had  the  honor  to 
hold  so  long,  fully  realizes  the  trouble  and  interruption  that 
he  is  continually  experiencing;  but  the  first  quality  for  any 
man  in  public  office  is  that  of  a  gentleman  [applause],  and 
the  quality  of  a  gentleman  is  of  very  much  the  same  quality 
as  that  which  Shakspere  speaks  of  in  regard  to  mercy,  "  It 
blesses  him  that  gives  and  him  that  takes."  It  has  a  reflex 
action  which  gives  a  man  the  possession  of  his  own  faculties. 

Then,  as  to  good  humor,  I  think  that  is  one  of  the  abso- 
lute essentials  for  a  public  officer.  If  a  man  is  to  be  irritated 
by  any  little  interruption,  I  think  the  best  thing  he  can  do  is 
to  resign  at  once.  [Laughter  and  applause.]  That,  perhaps, 
may  explain  my  idea  of  the  administration  of  the  duty  of  a 
public  office. 

Perhaps  I  may  speak  of  the  legislative  department,  hav- 
ing been  connected  with  it  for  a  short  time ;  although,  during 
the  twenty-five  years  that  I  have  been  in  the  Senate  Cham- 
ber, I  have  never  been  asked  until  to-night  to  make  a  speech. 
[Loud  laughter.]  Well,  now,  I  have  seen  the  time  when  I 
would  like  to  do  it  [renewed  laughter] ;  and  I  can  tell  you 
one  thing,  that  three  years  ago,  if  I  had  been  asked  to  make 
a  speech,  I  think  the  salary  bill  would  have  been  tremen- 
dously afflicted.     However,  I  did  not  have  the  opportunity. 

But  there  is  one  thing  I  would  like  to  say  in  vindication  of 
the  General   Court  of  Massachusetts.     The  constitution  au- 


33 

thorizes  the  voters  of  this  Commonwealth  to  meet  on  a  given 
day  and  choose  Representatives  and  Senators  to  the  Legis- 
lature of  Massachusetts.  Well,  the  people  go  to  work,  and 
sometimes  have  a  very  hard  fight ;  but  the  result  is,  taking 
all  things  into  consideration,  they  elect  what  they  believe  to 
be  the  best  men.  They  sometimes  make  a  mistake.  Every- 
body does.  [Uproarious  laughter.]  But  the  Legislature  is 
not  in  session  more  than  a  week,  when  you  will  see  in  the 
papers,  or  hear  some  man  say :  "  What  are  those  men  doing  ? 
They  have  been  there  a  week,  and  have  not  passed  a  bill  yet." 
So  it  goes  on  ;  and,  in  the  course  of  a  month,  you  will  hear 
it  said,  "  Of  course,  they  went  up  there  to  get  the  money ; 
and  I  suppose  they  will  stay  there  until  they  think  they  can 
make  more  money  elsewhere,  and  then  they  will  go  home." 
And  when  the  first  dandelion  appears  above  the  grass  in  the 
State  House  yard,  there  comes  a  howl  at  the  long  session  of 
the  Legislature ;  and  if  there  is  a  poor  robin  whistling  in  the 
leafless  elm  on  the  Common  [laughter],  no  matter  if  he  is 
whistling  to  keep  his  courage  up,  it  makes  no  difference, — 
"  It  is  about  time  for  them  to  go  home." 

Now,  there  are  some  things  of  importance  in  the  history 
of  Massachusetts  ;  and  I  want  to  know  to  what  the  char- 
acter of  the  Commonwealth  is  due  but  to  her  General 
Court.  Look  at  her  schools  ;  look  at  her  public  institutions  ; 
look  at  her  charitable  institutions.  Who  framed  the  Acts 
under  which  they  rose  }  Who  made  provision  for  their  sup- 
port ?  Who  has  made  Massachusetts  the  best  common- 
wealth on  the  face  of  God's  earth  but  the  Legislature  of 
Massachusetts.''  [Applause.]  No  other  power  can  do  it; 
and  I  say  that  the  character  of  Massachusetts  here  and 
everywhere  where  she  is  known,  is  due  to  the  honesty,  the 
fidelity,  the  industry  of  the  General  Court  [renewed  ap- 
plause] ;  and  I  say  further,  and  I  know  whereof  I  affirm,  that 
the  members  of  the  Legislature  of  Massachusetts,  those 
who  manage  the  business,  work  harder,  work  more  hours, 
than  they  would  in  their  own  business  at  home.  I  say  fur- 
ther—  and  I  can  say  that,  because  I  have  no  fear  of  con- 
tradiction—  they  work    a   good  deal  harder  than    I   would. 


34 

[Laughter.]  I  say  it  is  unjust ;  and,  if  the  people  understood 
it,  they  never  would  be  a  party  to  this  tirade. 

Gentlemen,  I  thank  you.  If  there  were  any  words 
stronger  than  these,  I  would  use  them.  I  most  respectfully 
thank  you  for  all  your  kindness,  for  the  unvarying  kindness 
of  every  member  of  the  Senate  with  whom  I  have  been 
acquainted.  I  have  this  pleasant  recollection  that  I  never 
knew  a  member  of  the  Senate  to  leave  it  with  a  feeling  of 
enmity  toward  myself. 

When  Mr.  Gifford  concluded  his  address,  the  company 
again  rose  to  their  feet,  and  cheered  and  applauded  their 
honored  and  honorable  friend. 

The  President. —  Gentlemen,  I  suppose  that  you  have 
observed  that  our  friend  the  Clerk  has  a  poetical  nature  and 
loves  poetry.  It  would  hardly  answer  in  such  an  assembly 
as  this  not  to  have  some  one  who  could  give  us  some  lines 
in  a  different  strain  from  that  most  of  us  are  accustomed  to 
use.  I  am  very  happy  to  say  that  one  of  the  Senators  of 
former  years  is  present  with  us,  and  I  presume  will  favor 
us  with  some  of  his  poetry,  Hon.  Henry  S.  Washburn. 

POEM    BY    HENRY   S.   WASHBURN. 

Ho  !  comrades,  why  this  gathering  of  old  friends  tried  and  true  ? 
What  service  has  the  Commonwealth  for  you  and  me  to  do  ? 
'Twas  long  ago  we  shook  the  dust  from  off  our  parting  feet, 
And  yet  as  Senators  once  more  we  now  together  meet. 
The  fair  dome  of  the  Capitol  looms  grandly  on  our  sight ; 
And  Boston  holds  the  whole  of  us  in  her  embrace  to-night. 

We  thought  we  framed  enough  of  laws  to  last  the  State  for  years, — 
That  we  could  not  her  future  know,  now  very  plain  appears  ; 
For,  ever  more  the  people  come  with  wants  to  be  supplied, 
With  projects  for  the  public  good  which  may  not  be  denied. 

But  why  this  gathering  to-night  ?  the  Muse  again  inquires, 
For  brightly  on  the  old  hearthstone  burn  newly  kindled  fires ; 
And  we  are  waiting  for  the  Clerk  the  Senate  roll  to  call, 
To  send  the  answer  back,  "  We're  here,"  for  duty,  one  and  all. 

No,  no,  not  all !  We  miss,  alas  !  some  of  our  foremost  men, 
Who  bravely  acted  well  their  part  with  ready  voice  and  pen ; 


35 

The  earnest  soul  and  eloquent  who  with  us,  hand  in  hand, 
Pressed  on,  until  his  footsteps  passed  the  unknown  border-land. 

Yet  one  remains  who  faithfully,  through  long,  unbroken  years, 

Has  kept  a  record  of  our  words  which  fell  upon  his  ears  ; 

A  sentinel  with  less  of  frown  than  humor  in  his  eyes, 

Who  still  the  oil  for  Senate  lamps  abundantly  supplies  ; 

Our  honored  guest,  who  to  his  post  still  clings  through  rain  and  shine. 

The  model  of  all  clerks  who've  served  in  that  distinguished  line. 

We  come  to  pay  the  tribute  which  his  silvered  locks  inspire ; 

To  tell  him  how  we  prize  him  as  his  days  of  life  expire ; 

To  take  him  once  more  by  the  hand  and  wish  him  still  God-speed, 

Who  o'er  and  o'er  has  been  to  us  a  helpful  friend  indeed. 

He  knows  how,  when  we  blundered,  he  hastened  to  our  aid. 

And  by  his  tact  how  oft  we  have  a  decent  record  made ; 

How  when,  perchance,  the  President  a  moment  left  the  chair, 

Through  him  we  have  been  able  a  good  point  to  declare. 

So  quietly  he  moved  about,  the  Chamber  never  knew 

His  was  the  merit  of  the  act  which  its  attention  drew. 

'Tis  said  our  friend  who,  modestly,  hath  this  distinction  won, 
Has  features  which  resemble  much  the  face  of  Washington, — 
An  honor  any  man  might  prize ;  and  'tis  his  rightful  claim 
No  action  of  his  life  has  been  unworthy  of  that  name. 

O  brothers !  'tis  no  easy  task  to  fill  so  fair  a  page. 
And  hold  a  place  of  public  trust  almost  from  youth  to  age ; 
To  win  respect,  and  bear  away  the  love  of  friend  and  foe, 
And  leave  fresh  garlands  strewn  along  our  pathway  as  we  go. 
Such  is  his  due  whose  brow  to-night  with  laurels  we  entwine, 
Our  record  at  this  festive  board, —  your  offering  and  mine. 

But  brief  our  lay;  yet  we  would  fain,  ere  this  glad  hour  is  o'er, 
A  blessing  breathe  for  our  good  State  we  never  honored  more. 
Her  influence,  carping  critics  claim,  is  on  the  wane  to-day; 
That  her  prestige,  once  potential,  is  vanishing  away ; 
That  mightier  States  are  rising,  nearer  the  setting  sun, 
Which  will  eclipse  the  glory  in  her  early  days  she  won, 
When  her  Adamses  and  Quincys  with  right  o'er  might  prevailed, 
And  foes  of  human  liberty  before  their  presence  quailed. 

Believe  it  not.     List!  even  now,  I  hear  her  old-time  cry, 
"  ^A  }na7i's  a  man  for  all  of  that ! '  gainsay  it  we  defy  ; 
And  upon  07tr  boundless  acres,  where  weary  feet  may  tread, 
There's  room  etiough  for  all  to  come  and  earn  their  daily  bread" 


36 

So,  echoing  long  this  paean,  we  part  for  hearth  and  home ; 
Again,  as  we  have  gathered  now,  we  nevermore  may  come. 
But  this  shall  be  our  glory :  should  the  nation  need  a  soul. 
Whose  strong  arm  will  be  able  her  future  to  control. 
Right  here  will  rise  a  Webster,  an  Andrew,  or  a  Long, 
To  steer  the  good  Ship  safely  through  anarchy  and  wrong. 

[Applause.] 

The  President. —  Many  years  ago,  it  was  my  fortune 
to  be  elected  when  a  young  man  to  the  Legislature.  I  took 
my  seat  in  the  House  with  three  hundred  others ;  among 
them,  a  young  man  whom  I  had  heard  of  before,  from 
Waltham.  His  name  at  that  time  had  even  filled  the 
Commonwealth ;  and  he  came  into  the  House  with  just 
expectations,  and  those  expectations  have  been  most  honor- 
ably and  gloriously  fulfilled.  After  having  the  highest 
honors  of  the  State,  after  serving  his  country  on  the  field, 
after  having  had  honors  in  the  House  of  Representatives 
in  Congress,  he  has  returned  to  Massachusetts  and  been 
a  Senator  ;  and  it  is  my  great  pleasure  to  welcome  him  here 
to-night,  as  ,you  all  do.  I  have  now  the  pleasure  of  intro- 
ducing to  you  Hon.  N.  P.  Banks. 

General  Banks  was  greeted  with  three  cheers,  the  assem- 
bly rising  to  do  him  honor. 

ADDRESS    OF    HON.    N.    P.    BANKS. 

Mr.  President, —  Were  not  your  commands  laid  so  heavily 
upon  me  at  the  commencement  of  the  pleasures  of  the  even- 
ing, I  certainly  should  not  trespass  upon  the  patience  of  the 
company  to-night  ;  but  I  am  very  grateful  for  the  opportu- 
nity of  being  present,  of  looking  upon  the  company  by 
which  I  am  surrounded,  and  of  listening  to  the  sentiments 
of  the  gentlemen  who  have  spoken  so  eloquently  and  so 
truthfully  as  well  as  beautifully. 

I  came  here  like  you,  Mr.  President,  and  the  rest  of  you, 
gentlemen,  to  honor  my  friend,  Mr.  Gifford,  whom  I  have 
known  a  long  time, —  not  exactly  in  the  way  and  with  the 
zest  and  right  which  you  have  to  honor  him  in  his  position 
as  Secretary  of  the  Senate,  but  still  to  give  him  my  meed 


37 

of  praise  as  well  as  I  can.  I  will,  however,  speak  rather  of 
the  office  which  he  holds  than  of  the  manner  in  which  he 
has  discharged  its  duties ;  for  I  can  add  nothing  to  that 
which  has  been  said,  nor  do  I  think  anybody  else  can. 

The  office  of  secretary  of  a  body  like  the  Senate,  or  of  a 
secretary  anywhere,  though  lowly  in  character,  and  often- 
times in  disesteem  by  the  masses  of  the  people,  is  every- 
where and  always  a  post  of  great  responsibility,  requiring 
the  highest  qualities  of  intellect  and  of  heart,  depending 
more  upon  the  integrity  of  the  man  that  fills  it  than  almost 
any  other  office  that  has  been  held.  I  could  give,  sir,  one 
or  two  illustrations  of  this  which  would  justify  the  high 
praise  which  gentlemen  have  given  our  friend  who  is  here 
to-night.  M.  Thiers,  in  his  history  of  the  Empire  of 
France,  at  the  close  of  that  contest  which  overthrew  the 
first  emperor,  Napoleon,  a  man  who  thought  he  might  with 
becoming  modesty  count  himself  as  the  third  among  the 
great  men  who  had  been  created  to  rule  the  destinies  of 
the  world,  and  who,  I  think,  might  very  well  be  counted 
among  the  first  in  that  great  contest  which  overthrew  the 
first  Napoleon  and  destroyed  the  empire, —  the  historian 
mentions  an  honorable  thing  in  the  performance  of  his  task, 
attributes  the  success  of  that  final  campaign  to  an  unknown 
man  without  fortune  or  influence  or  power,  who  was  the 
secretary  of  the  first  Alexander  of  Russia.  In  my  own  time, 
in  one  of  the  most  important  contests  of  our  day,  which 
perhaps  enlisted  the  interest  of  the  people  of  this  country 
more  than  any  other  contest  in  the  last  third  or  half  of  a 
century  even,  which  has  been  of  some  importance  in  its 
influence  upon  the  destiny  of  the  country  since  that  time, 
I  saw  a  man  for  nine  weeks  to  an  hour  who  held  in  his 
hand  at  any  moment  the  power  to  close  that  contest  against 
the  majority  who  finally  won  a  triumph,  and  who  had  every 
temptation  held  out  to  him  to  use  his  power,  and  yet  who, 
faithful  to  his  trust,  left  it  to  be  decided  according  to  the 
wishes  and  according  to  the  votes  of  those  to  whom  by  the 
Constitution  it  was  delegated.  If  that  man  had  failed  to  be 
in  his  place  at  any  moment    on    any  morning,  the  contest 


38 

would  have  been  over  ;  but  he  never  failed.  The  tick  of  the 
clock  found  him  at  his  place ;  and  thus  was  decided  one  of 
the  great  contests,  one  of  the  important  contests  of  this 
country.  And  the  name  of  the  man  is  entitled  to  the 
respect  of  the  people  of  this  country,  when  I  speak  of  the 
Clerk  of  the  House  of  Representatives  in  1855  and  1856, — 
an  office  occupied  by  John  W.  Forney,  of  Pennsylvania. 

There  is  scarcely  an  administration  anywhere  that  does 
not  rely  largely  upon  the  secretary, —  Great  Britain  upon 
the  Secretary  of  the  Queen,  and  the  European  governments 
upon  their  Secretaries.  Who  is  it  that  directs  the  destinies 
of  this  country  ?  The  Secretary.  The  greatest  capacity, 
the  highest  possible  attainments,  the  strictest  integrity,  are 
required  for  an  office  like  this.  Such  is  the  character  our 
friend  possesses.  I  will  not  add  to  the  qualifications,  lest 
some  unsophisticated  persons  might  think  hereafter  that 
such  an  office,  filled  by  such  a  man  as  Gifford,  might  enable 
the  people  of  the  Commonwealth  to  get  along  another  quar- 
ter of  a  century  without  any  Senators  at  all.     [Applause.] 

But,  sir,  I  am  reminded,  when  I  look  around  upon  those 
whom  I  ought  to  have  known  better,  that  I  have  been  much 
absent  from  this  State  for  a  long  period  of  time,  and  that  I 
see  now  before  me,  I  may  say  without  extravagance,  the 
Representatives  of  the.  people  that  have,  in  the  last  quarter 
of  a  century,  made  Massachusetts  what  it  is,  who  have  ena- 
bled her  to  influence  the  destinies  of  the  country  to  the 
extent  and  in  the  manner  in  which  she  has  done ;  that  is, 
they  are  Representatives  in  one  branch  of  her  Legislature 
which  has  given  her  her  renown,  as  well  as  her  influence  and 
power,  and  has  bestowed  upon  the  country  that  meed  of  suc- 
cess which  we  have  attained  in  the  contests  which  we  have 
had.  As  such,  Mr.  President,  I  salute  these  gentlemen,  and 
as  such  I  honor  them.  I  can  remember  myself  when  I 
thought  the  Senate  of  Massachusetts  was  not  a  very  lively 
place.  I  have  heard  people  oftentimes  speak  lightly  of  it : 
very  frequently,  they  are  inclined  to  speak  lightly  of  public 
men  [laughter] ;  but  at  one  time,  by  some  accident  or  other, 
I  was  chosen  to  a  seat  in  the  Senate  of  Massachusetts,  and 


39 

I  served  for  several  months  as  a  member  of  that  Senate  ;  and 
I  am  prepared  to  say,  sir,  that  in  my  time  I  have  seen  many 
parliamentary  assemblies,  I  have  assisted  in  the  business 
of  many  sessions  of  legislative  bodies,  I  know  pretty  well 
their  history  and  their  character  and  the  influence  which 
they  have  borne  upon  the  affairs  of  this  country,  and,  while 
I  have  been  perhaps  unduly  careless  of  my  part  in  them,  so 
far  as  I  have  been  connected  with  them,  I  never  have  for- 
gotten what  has  been  transacted  before  my  eyes.  And  I 
remember  distinctly  my  career  and  my  experience  in  this 
regard ;  and  yet  I  take  pleasure  in  saying  that,  with  regard  to 
the  variety  of  the  interests  discussed,  the  novelty  of  ques- 
tions, the  power  brought  into  the  discussion  of  these  ques- 
tions in  the  Senate  of  Massachusetts,  where,  in  1874,  I  was 
a  member,  that  I  would  be  better  pleased  to  have  preserved 
my  record  in  that  session  than  any  other  part  of  my  life.  I 
should  feel  more  secure  and  more  satisfied  with  my  public 
service  in  that  record  as  Senator  from  the  Second  Middlesex 
District  in  1874,  as  much  so  at  least  as  any  other  part  of  my 
public  life ;  and  I  appreciate,  therefore,  from  my  experience, 
the  truth  of  much  that  has  been  said  by  gentlemen  in  regard 
to  that  service. 

One  reason  of  this  is  that  in  the  Senate  of  Massachusetts 
legislative  debate  is  exactly  what  it  should  be, —  directed  to 
the  question,  discussed  by  men  who  have  made  themselves 
acquainted  with  its  merits,  who  know  by  experience  what 
has  been  done  in  the  past,  and  by  good  judgment  what 
should  be  done  in  the  future,  and  thus  bring  to  every  ques- 
tion that  is  adopted  and  decided  in  this  body  to  which  we 
have  all  referred  a  judgment  as  perfect  as  man  can  bring  to 
the  decision  of  any  public  legislation.  I  have  seen  many 
assemblies  of  this  character  elsewhere,  I  have  taken  part  in 
many  legislative  sessions,  and  I  have  never  known  any  place 
where  debate  has  been  so  exactly  what  legislative  debate 
should  be  as  in  the  Senate  of  Massachusetts  ;  and  I  am 
happy,  sir,  to  have  had  the  opportunity  of  saying  thus  much. 
Our  influence  upon  our  country,  and  to  some  extent  upon 
the  world  itself,  has  been   moulded  and  has  been  produced 


40 

by  legislation  of  this  character,  and  by  the  services  of 
public  men  of  the  character  I  have  described ;  and  I  trust 
the  Legislature  of  Massachusetts  will  hereafter  continue  in 
the  hands  of  the  same  class  of  men,  and  be  directed  to  the 
same  great  interests  of  liberty  and  justice,  until  the  princi- 
ples of  the  legislation  of  this  State  shall  prevail  in  every 
part  of  the  world,  and  characterize  and  bless  the  people  of 
every  portion  of  the  earth.     [Applause.] 

The  President. —  We  have  one  with  us  who  has  been  an 
honor  to  the  State  by  his  clear  decisions  and  straightforward 
character.  I  have  the  pleasure  of  now  presenting  to  you 
Speaker  Noyes,  of  the  House.     [Applause.] 

ADDRESS    OF    HON.    CHARLES   J.    NOYES. 

Mr.  President, —  At  such  a  time  and  in  such  a  presence' 
as  this,  any  one  may  rise  with  reluctance  to  respond  for  any 
body  in  which  he  had  the  honor  of  a  seat ;  and  more 
especially  might  he  hesitate  to  speak,  following  the  dis- 
tinguished gentlemen  who  have  already  addressed  those 
present,  whose  bright,  shining  sickles  never  leave  anything 
to  be  gleaned  by  those  who  follow  in  their  rear. 

Looking  back,  Mr.  President,  over  the  mists  of  fifteen 
years,  recalling  the  honored  namies  of  my  associates  in  the 
Senate  of  1867,  I  might  well  hesitate  and  feel  grieved  that 
this  task  had  not  fallen  to  abler  hands  than  mine.  I 
remember  very  well  the  brief  experience  I  had  in  the 
Senatorial  branch  of  the  government.  I  remember  the 
honored  names  of  my  associates,  who  have  added  very  much 
to  the  glory  and  reputation  of  this  good  old  Commonwealth, 
I  remember  the  sad  duty  that  Senate  had  to  perform 
of  following  to  his  honored  but  untimely  grave  the 
distinguished  gentleman  who  presided  over  our  delibera- 
tions, whose  grace,  whose  dignity,  whose  handsome  presence 
no  member  of  the  Senate  of  1866  can  live  long  enough  to 
forget,  a  man  whose  loss  this  Commonwealth  might  well 
lament  for  all  time  to  come, —  Hon.  Joseph  A.  Pond.  And 
I    remember  at  his  right    hand    sat  the  warm-hearted,  the 


41 

genial,  and  accomplished  gentleman,  who  afterward  was 
called  to  be  a  successor  in  his  office ;  and  upon  his  left,  a 
gentleman,  who  to-day,  in  the  advanced  years  of  his  life, 
still  holds  undisputed  sway  upon  the  floor  of  the  popular 
assembly  of  the  Legislature.  I  remember  the  distinguished 
merchant  of  Springfield,  Mr.  Alexander,  and  all  the  other 
associates ;  but  time  fails  me  to  repeat  their  names,  who 
at  that  time  served  with  distinction,  and  have  added  new 
laurels  as  the  years  have  gone  on  to  the  glory  they  then 
acquired.  That  Senate  is  a  matter  of  the  past.  Its  conflicts 
have  ended,  the  tumult  of  its  voices  is  silent ;  but,  however 
so  much,  Mr.  President,  we  may  have  disagreed  upon  other 
questions,  we  always  cordially  agreed  in  extending  our 
esteem,  our  grateful  recognition,  and  our  heart-felt  thanks 
to  the  genial,  the  companionable,  and  assisting  Clerk,  who 
did  so  much  for  our  comfort  and  our  convenience  in 
promoting  the  public  business  of  that  year.  [Applause.] 
It  has  been  truly  said,  it  seems  to  me,  that,  "  though  the 
head  may  whiten,  the  heart  keeps  young  and  fresh."  And 
so  it  is  with  Mr.  Gifford.  I  cannot  help  comparing  him 
to  that  scene  the  traveller  finds  among  the  Alps, —  when 
the  glaciers  glitter  overhead,  beneath  are  the  wild  flowers, 
blooming  sweetly  in  the  spring,  scattering  their  fragrance 
on  the  frosty  air.     [Applause.] 

So,  Mr.  President,  while  I  regret  that  the  duty  of  speaking 
for  the  Senate  of  1867  has  not  been  committed  to  the  charge 
of  a  much  abler  person,  I  am  yet  happy  to  come  here  to- 
night in  a  humble  way  to  add  my  felicitations  to  yours  and 
my  associates  at  this  table,  and  to  assist  in  rendering  the 
esteem  and  honor  which  Mr.  Gifford  deserves  from  every 
man  who  ever  had  occasion  to  have  official  relations  with 
him  in  public  life.  And  so,  with  tearful  remembrance  of 
the  dead  and  kindliest  esteem  for  the  living,  I  bring  to  him 
to-night  the  good  words  that  would  be  spoken  by  lips  that 
are  silent  had  they  the  power,  and  the  kindly  words  that 
would  be  brought  here  by  the  living  who  are  absent  ;  and, 
should  he  call  the  roll  of  the  Senate  of  1867,  every  one 
would  vote,  "  Yea,"  in  honor  of  him.     [Applause.] 


42 

« 

The  President. —  It  is  now  time  that  we  heard  from  the 
western  part  of  the  State.  We  always  hear  good  news  from 
the  Connecticut  Valley.  Among  the  honored  names  from 
that  part  of  the  State  is  one  who  served  in  the  Senate,  who 
has  been  offered  higher  positions,  and  yet,  with  a  modesty 
peculiar  to  him,  he  has  refused  them, —  not  even  allowing 
himself  to  be  sent  to  Congress,  which  is  a  remarkable  thing. 
We  shall  be  very  glad  to  hear  from  him.  We  recognize  the 
fact  that  there  are  two  parties  in  the  Senate,  though  I  do 
not  hear  anything  of  them  in  your  speeches.  We  shall  be 
very  glad  to  hear  from  the  Hon.  George  M.  Stearns,  of  Chic- 
opee.     [Applause.] 

ADDRESS    OF    HON.    GEORGE    M.    STEARNS. 

Mr.  President, —  I  am  very  happy  indeed  you  have  called 
upon  me  to-night ;  for  I  am  very  glad  of  the  opportunity  to 
bring  my  chaplet,  even  though  it  be  of  modest  river  roses 
and  daisies,  and  lay  it  at  the  feet  of  our  honored  guest.  I 
am  also  happy  on  my  own  account.  I  am  glad  to  be  able 
even  for  a  fleeting  moment  to  rescue  from  the  shadow  of 
forgetfulness  the  fact  that  I,  too,  have  been  a  Senator  of 
Massachusetts.  [Applause.]  During  the  "late  unpleasant- 
ness "  between  the  two  sections  of  this  country,  as  Major  of 
the  Home  Guards  [laughter]  I  so  brilliantly  conducted  the 
prudent  art  of  self-defence  by  the  avoidance  of  danger  [re- 
newed laughter]  that,  at  the  close  of  the  war,  I  was  swept  by 
a  grateful  people  upon  the  waves  of  military  popularity  into 
the  Senate  Chamber  [laughter  and  applause] ;  and  ever  since 
that  time,  like  many  another  martial  hero,  my  name  and 
fame  have  been  folded  beneath  oblivion's  dusky  wave. 
[Laughter.] 

In  1871,  I  came  to  the  Massachusetts  Senate  with  the 
average  qualifications  of  a  Massachusetts  Senator;  that  is 
to  say,  I  knew  nothing  of  my  duties  or  the  method  of  their 
performance.  [Applause  and  laughter.]  I  joined  with  those 
in  the  Senate  in  like  situation,  and  we  constituted  a  major- 
ity of  the  number.  [Renewed  laughter.]  Of  course,  under 
these  circumstances,  we   resorted   to   the    Clerk.      We    be- 


43 

leaguered  his  leisure,  we  invaded  his  privacy,  we  intruded 
upon  his  quiet,  we  interrupted  his  labor,  we  smote  his  ears 
with  questions,  we  besieged  his  private  working-room,  we 
overturned  his  spittoon,  we  gobbled  his  snuff,  we  took  his 
fragrant  Havanas,  manufactured  from  Sufifield  seconds. 
[Laughter.]  But,  during  all  this,  we  found  the  same  oblig- 
ing, generous,  genial,  patient,  pleasant  Clerk  that  many  a 
Massachusetts  Senator  had  found  before,  and  many  a  Massa- 
chusetts Senator  has  found  since. 

Nature  never  deceives.  She  makes  the  ceaseless  murmur 
of  the  sea  and  tossing  foam  declare  the  rocks  beneath  the 
waters  ;  and  so  she  always  surmounts  an  honest  heart  with 
a  noble  face.  I  recollect  at  one  time,  as  Clerk  Gifford  sat 
at  his  desk  overlooking  his  charge  with  a  benign  gaze,  his 
countenance  illuminated  with  the  light  within,  that  I  noticed 
a  Democratic  brother  of  mine  at  the  Senate  bar  who  sat 
watching,  with  worshipful  wonder,  the  transfigured  Clerk. 
Chancing  at  that  time  to  desire  to  make  a  quotation  in  a 
speech  I  was  about  to  make,  I  turned  to  Senator  Parks,  of 
Suffolk,  who  was  the  acknowledged  authority  in  the  Senate 
upon  all  Scriptural  matters  [laughter],  and  I  said  to  him, 
"Bill,  who  composed  the  Lord's  prayer.^"  [Laughter.] 
"  Why,"  says  he,  "  Gifford."  [Loud  and  uproarious  laughter.] 
Says  I,  "That  can't  be  so  :  he  is  not  so  old  as  that,  is  he.''" 
[Renewed  laughter.]  But  I  saw  from  the  look  he  gave  me 
that  his  faith  and  trust  were  so  deep  and  implicit  that  they 
were  not  to  be  shaken,  even  by  the  contradiction  of  one  of 
the  unterrified  faith.  So  I  left  him,  and  abandoned  the 
fruitless  endeavor. 

Mr.  President,  I  am  happy  to  say  that  the  retrospect  that 
our  friend  Gifford  has  is  one  that  is  rarely  granted  to  man, 
—  twenty-five  years  of  public  service  without  a  stain  ;  twenty- 
five  years  of  association  with  six  hundred  exacting  Senators 
without  a  jar  ;  twenty-five  years  of  public  labors  without  a 
mistake  !  Long  may  the  Commonwealth  be  spared  the  able 
head,  the  honest  heart,  and  the  indefatigable  hand  of  the 
Senate  Clerk.     [Applause.] 


44 

The  President. —  Gentlemen,  I  have  succeeded  so  well 
in  going  to  the  valleys,  I  think  I  will  try  again,  and  seek  a 
man  from  the  valley  of  the  Merrimack,  one  who  comes  from 
the  city  of  Lawrence,  and  which  the  gentleman  has  made 
famous, —  Mr.  Tarbox,  who  is  known  all  through  the  land. 
[Applause.] 

ADDRESS  OF  HON.  JOHN  K.  TARBOX. 

Mr.  President, —  Did  I  essay  to  speak  the  praises  of  our 
guest,  I  could  but  iterate  what  has  been  already  most  fitly 
and  gracefully  spoken.  This  distinguished  and  representa- 
tive company  met  to  grace  his  public  service  with  their  ap- 
probation is  the  occasion's  best  orator.  For  a  quarter  of  a 
century,  the  recorder,  by  annual  election,  of  the  transactions 
of  the  most  dignified  legislative  body  of  the  State,  approved 
for  integrity,  capacity,  and  the  agreeable  qualities  which  win 
esteem  by  the  judgment  of  twenty-five  successive  Senates, 
Mr,  Gifford  can  need  no  fairer  testimonial  of  the  accepta- 
bility of  his  labors.  Although,  during  that  period,  the  polit- 
ical party  of  his  sympathies  has  controlled  the  Senate 
organization,  yet  we  here  can  testify  with  unanimous  voice 
that  his  repeated  election  has  not  been  due  to  partisan  favor 
or  in  payment  of  partisan  services,  or  to  any  servility  on  his 
part,  but  to  a  just  estimate  of  his  worth  as  a  man  and  official. 
That  Massachusetts  delights  to  honor  such  as  he  in  her 
places  of  trust  is  creditable  to  our  good  Commonwealth ;  and 
I  am  sure  I  may  command  all  your  voices  in  the  sentiment 
that,  if  the  same  test  and  spirit  of  selection  obtained  in  all 
the  departments  of  public  administration,  there  would  exist 
no  such  occasion  as  now  unfortunately  does  exist  for  people 
and  statesmen  to  agitate  the  evils  and  needs  and  methods 
of  reform  in  the  civil  service.  We  do  well  and  worthily,  I 
think,  sir,  to  bestow  our  plaudits  generously  in  praise  and 
encouragement  of  conscientious  fidelity  in  our  public  ser- 
vants at  a  season  when  the  decadence  of  the  nice  sense  of 
duty  and  responsibility  in  public  trusts  excites  general 
solicitude. 

One  quality  of  Mr.   Gifford,  displayed  in  my  intercourse 


45 

with  him  while  a  member  of  the  Senate,  I  recall  with  agree- 
able sensibility.  He  never  made  me  feel  the  ignominy  of 
my  disreputable  politics.  [Laughter.]  Whatever  his  thoughts 
were,  he  considerately  kept  them  to  himself,  and  used  me  as 
fairly  and  courteously  as  though  I  were  a  good  Republican 
and  a  veritable  man  and  brother.  [Renewed  laughter.] 
Indeed,  for  aught  I  was  able  to  discover,  he  served  me  as 
acceptably  in  that  relation  as  would  even  a  fellow-disciple 
of  the  faith  of  our  Democratic  apostle,  Jefferson.  That 
kindly  memory,  sir,  and  the  gracious  atmosphere  of  this 
delightful  political  truce,  inspire  in  me  the  sentiment  which 
I  venture  to  express,  that  the  asperities  of  our  politics  may 
soften  and  yield  to  a  broader  tolerance  and  a  larger  charity, 
and  our  party  contentions  dignify  into  a  patriotic  emulation 
as  to  which  can  worthiest  serve  the  common  welfare  and 
advance  the  reputation  of  our  State  and  the  beneficence  of 
the  Republic.  [Applause.]  I  heartily  unite  with  this  goodly 
company  in  wishing  Mr.  Gifford  continued  length  of  happy 
life  and  useful  public  service.     [Applause.] 

In  the  temporary  absence  of  the  President  of  the  even- 
ing, Hon.  Robert  R.  Bishop,  who  had  taken  the  chair,  called 
upon  the  Hon.  J.  M.  S.  Williams,  of  Cambridge,  as  a  dis- 
tinguished member  of  the  Senate,  and  a  gentleman  who 
had  rendered  important  service  in  the  public  affairs  of  the 
country. 

ADDRESS    OF    HON.    J.    M.    S.    WILLIAMS. 

I  join  in  all  that  has  been  said,  Mr.  President,  in  regard 
to  Mr.  Gifford,  and  my  association  with  him  in  the  Senate 
will  ever  be  pleasant  to  remember ;  but  I  will  not  occupy 
time  at  this  late  hour  of  the  evening. 

Mr.  Bishop. —  Gentlemen,  allow  me  to  call  upon  Mr. 
Fuller,  of  Westfield,  a  member  of  the  Senate  whom  I  very 
well  remember  when  I  was  myself  a  member  of  the  House 
of  Representatives. 


46 


ADDRESS  OF  HON.  HENRY  FULLER. 

Mr.  President, —  I  had  supposed  the  speakers  of  the  even, 
ing  had  all  been  selected.  I  cannot  make  any  extended 
remarks  here  this  evening.  I  can  only  add  to  what  has  been 
said  in  behalf  of  my  friend,  Mr.  Gifford,  with  whom  I  had 
the  pleasure  to  serve  three  years,  1868,  1874,  and  1875,  that 
he  was  always  the  courteous  gentleman  that  he  has  been 
represented  to  be  here  this  evening ;  and,  though  I  had  the 
misfortune  to  belong  to  the  minority  party,  as  my  friend  Mr. 
Tarbox  said,  I  never  saw  any  discrimination  on  his  part  with 
reference  to  any  member  of  the  Senate  during  the  three 
years  which  I  had  the  honor  of  serving  in  that  body.  I 
always  voted  for  Brother  Gifford  ;  and  I  presume  I  always 
should,  if  I  was  re-elected  to  that  honorable  position  on  any 
future  occasion. 

Mr.  Gifford  is  very  happy  in  the  administration  of  his 
duties,  from  what  he  stated  to  you  this  evening  of  what 
qualities  should  characterize  a  public  officer.  Though  he 
has  belonged  to  the  predominant  party  of  the  State,  he  has 
always  been  elected  in  part  by  the  votes  of  the  minority  ; 
for,  if  a  part  of  the  majority  becomes  disaffected  with  a  clerk 
or  any  other  officer,  he  is  easily  thrown  out  of  office,  if  the 
minority  are  also  dissatisfied.  But  he  so  discharged  his 
duties  that  he  always  served  the  minority  and  served  the 
majority  also.  I  trust,  as  has  been  said  here  to-night,  that 
he  will  serve  as  long  as  he  desires  to  serve,  and  I  have  no 
doubt  that  he  will.  His  make-up  is  such  that  he  will  serve 
as  long  as  he  is  able  to  serve  ;  and,  from  his  appearance  here 
to-night,  which  is  about  the  same  as  when  I  entered  the 
Senate,  in  1868,  I  think  he  may  serve  twenty-five  years 
longer.     [Applause.] 

The  President  (who  had  resumed  the  chair). —  Gentle- 
men, I  am  reminded  the  hour  is  getting  somewhat  late, 
especially  for  Senators.  There  are  many  we  should  desire 
to  hear  from,  if  we  had  time ;  but,  by  the  advice  of  those 
having  charge  of  the  meeting,  and  with  great  reluctance,  I 
now  declare  it  closed. 


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